Unit

Functions Treatment Devices

Operations/Processes
Screening Removal of large floating, Bar racks and screens of various
suspended and settleable solids description
Grit Removal Removal of inorganic suspended Grit chamber
solids
Primary Sedimentation Removal of organic/inorganic Primary sedimentation tank
settleable solids
Aerobic Biological Conversion of colloidal, dissolved Activated sludge process units and
Suspended Growth and residual suspended organic its modifications, Waste stabilisation
Process matter into settleable biofloc and ponds, Aerated lagoons
stable inorganics
Aerobic Biological Attached same as above Trickling filter, Rotating biological
Growth Process contactor
Anaerobic biological growth Conversion of organic matter into Anaerobic filter, Fluid bed
processes CH4 & CO2 and relatively stable submerged media anaerobic reactor,
organic residue Upflow anaerobic sludge blanket
reactor, Anaerobic rotating biological
contactor
Anaerobic Stabilization of same as above Anaerobic digestor
Organic Sludges

Screening

A screen is a device with openings for removing bigger suspended or floating matter in sewage
which would otherwise damage equipment or interfere with satisfactory operation of treatment
units.

Types of Screens

Coarse Screens: Coarse screens also called racks, are usually bar screens, composed of
vertical or inclined bars spaced at equal intervals across a channel through which sewage flows.
Bar screens with relatively large openings of 75 to 150 mm are provided ahead of pumps, while
those ahead of sedimentation tanks have smaller openings of 50 mm.

Bar screens are usually hand cleaned and sometimes provided with mechanical devices. These
cleaning devices are rakes which periodically sweep the entire screen removing the solids for
further processing or disposal. Hand cleaned racks are set usually at an angle of 45° to the
horizontal to increase the effective cleaning surface and also facilitate the raking operations.
Mechanical cleaned racks are generally erected almost vertically. Such bar screens have
openings 25% in excess of the cross section of the sewage channel.

43 UNDER REVISION
Medium Screens: Medium screens have clear openings of 20 to 50 mm.Bar are usually 10 mm
thick on the upstream side and taper slightly to the downstream side. The bars used for screens
are rectangular in cross section usually about 10 x 50 mm, placed with larger dimension parallel
to the flow.

Fine Screens: Fine screens are mechanically cleaned devices using perforated plates, woven
wire cloth or very closely spaced bars with clear openings of less than 20 mm. Fine screens are
not normally suitable for sewage because of clogging possibilities.

The most commonly used bar type screen is shown in figure:

Velocity

The velocity of flow ahead of and through the screen varies and affects its operation. The lower
the velocity through the screen, the greater is the amount of screenings that would be removed
from sewage. However, the lower the velocity, the greater would be the amount of solids
deposited in the channel. Hence, the design velocity should be such as to permit 100% removal
of material of certain size without undue depositions. Velocities of 0.6 to 1.2 mps through the
open area for the peak flows have been used satisfactorily. Further, the velocity at low flows in
the approach channel should not be less than 0.3 mps to avoid deposition of solids.

Head loss

Head loss varies with the quantity and nature of screenings allowed to accumulate between
cleanings. The head loss created by a clean screen may be calculated by considering the flow
and the effective areas of screen openings, the latter being the sum of the vertical projections of
the openings. The head loss through clean flat bar screens is calculated from the following
formula:

h = 0.0729 (V2 - v2)

where, h = head loss in m

V = velocity through the screen in mps

v = velocity before the screen in mps

Another formula often used to determine the head loss through a bar rack is Kirschmer's
equation:

h = K(W/b)4/3 hv sin θ

where h = head loss, m

44 UNDER REVISION
K = bar shape factor (2.42 for sharp edge rectangular bar, 1.83 for rectangular bar with
semicircle upstream, 1.79 for circular bar and 1.67 for rectangular bar with both u/s and d/s face
as semicircular).
W = maximum width of bar u/s of flow, m
b = minimum clear spacing between bars, m
hv = velocity head of flow approaching rack, m = v2/2g
θ = angle of inclination of rack with horizontal
The head loss through fine screen is given by
h = (1/2g) (Q/CA)
where, h = head loss, m
Q = discharge, m3/s
C = coefficient of discharge (typical value 0.6)
A = effective submerged open area, m2
The quantity of screenings depends on the nature of the wastewater and the screen openings.

Equalization Tanks

The equalization tanks are provided (i) to balance fluctuating flows or concentrations, (ii) to
assist self neutralization, or (iii) to even out the effect of a periodic "slug" discharge from a batch
process.

Types of Equalization Tanks

Equalization tanks are generally of three types:

1. Flow through type

2. Intermittent flow type
3. Variable inflow/constant discharge type

The simple flow through type equalization tank is mainly useful in assisting self neutralization
or evening out of fluctuating concentrations, not for balancing of flows since a flow through type
tank once filled, gives output equal to input.

Flow balancing and self-neutralization are both achieved by using two tanks, intermittently one
after another. One tank is allowed to fill up after which it is checked for pH (or any other
parameter) and then allowed to empty out. The second tank goes through a similar routine.
Intermittent flow type tanks are economic for small flows from industries.

When flows are large an equalization tank of such a size may have to be provided that inflow
can be variable while outflow is at a constant rate, generally by a pump.The capacity
required is determined from a plot of the cumulative inflow and a plot of the constant rate
outflow and measuring the gaps between the two plots. A factor of safety may be applied if
desired.

45 UNDER REVISION
Generally, detention time vary from 2 to 8 hours but may be even 12 hours or more in some
cases. When larger detention times are required, the equalization unit is sometimes provided in
the form of facultative aerated lagoon.

LECTURE-17
Grit Chambers

Grit chambers are basin to remove the inorganic particles to prevent damage to the pumps, and
to prevent their accumulation in sludge digestors.

Types of Grit Chambers

Grit chambers are of two types: mechanically cleaned and manually cleaned. In mechanically
cleaned grit chamber, scraper blades collect the grit settled on the floor of the grit chamber. The
grit so collected is elevated to the ground level by several mechanisms such as bucket
elevators, jet pump and air lift. The grit washing mechanisms are also of several designs most
of which are agitation devices using either water or air to produce washing action. Manually
cleaned grit chambers should be cleaned atleast once a week. The simplest method of cleaning
is by means of shovel.

Aerated Grit Chamber

An aerated grit chamber consists of a standard spiral flow aeration tank provided with air
diffusion tubes placed on one side of the tank. The grit particles tend to settle down to the
bottom of the tank at rates dependant upon the particle size and the bottom velocity of roll of the
spiral flow, which in turn depends on the rate of air diffusion through diffuser tubes and shape of
aeration tank. The heavier particles settle down whereas the lighter organic particles are carried
with roll of the spiral motion.

Principle of Working of Grit Chamber

Grit chambers are nothing but like sedimentation tanks, designed to separate the intended
heavier inorganic materials (specific gravity about 2.65) and to pass forward the lighter organic
materials. Hence, the flow velocity should neither be too low as to cause the settling of lighter
organic matter, nor should it be too high as not to cause the settlement of the silt and grit
present in the sewage. This velocity is called "differential sedimentation and differential scouring
velocity". The scouring velocity determines the optimum flow through velocity. This may be
explained by the fact that the critical velocity of flow 'vc' beyond which particles of a certain size
and density once settled, may be again introduced into the stream of flow. It should always be
less than the scouring velocity of grit particles. The critical velocity of scour is given by Schield's
formula:

V = 3 to 4.5 (g(Ss - 1)d)1/2

46 UNDER REVISION
A horizontal velocity of flow of 15 to 30 cm/sec is used at peak flows. This same velocity is to be
maintained at all fluctuation of flow to ensure that only organic solids and not the grit is scoured
from the bottom.

Types of Velocity Control Devices

1. A sutro weir in a channel of rectangular cross section, with free fall downstream of the
channel.
2. A parabolic shaped channel with a rectangular weir.
3. A rectangular shaped channel with a parshall flume at the end which would also help
easy flow measurement.

Design of Grit Chambers

Settling Velocity

The settling velocity of discrete particles can be determined using appropriate equation
depending upon Reynolds number.

 Stoke's law: v= g(Ss-1)d2

 18μ

Stoke's law holds good for Reynolds number,Re below 1.

Re=ρvd
μ

For grit particles of specific gravity 2.65 and liquid temperature at 10°C, μ =1.01 x 10 -6m2/s. This
corresponds to particles of size less than 0.1 mm.

 Transition law: The design of grit chamber is based on removal of grit particles with
minimum size of 0.15 mm and therefore Stoke's law is not applicable to determine the
settling velocity of grit particles for design purposes.

v2=4g(ρp-ρ)d
3CDρ

where, CD= drag coefficient Transition flow conditions hold good for Reynolds number,Re
between 1 and 1000. In this range CD can be approximated by

CD=18.5=18.5
Re0.6 (ρvd/ μ )0.6

Primary Sedimentation

47 UNDER REVISION
Primary sedimentation in a municipal wastewater treatment plant is generally plain
sedimentation without the use of chemicals. In treating certain industrial wastes chemically
aided sedimentation may be involved. In either case, it constitutes flocculent settling, and the
particles do not remain discrete as in the case of grit, but tend to agglomerate or coagulate
during settling. Thus, their diameter keeps increasing and settlement proceeds at an over
increasing velocity. Consequently, they trace a curved profile.

The settling tank design in such cases depends on both surface loading and detention time.

Long tube settling tests can be performed in order to estimate specific value of surface loading
and detention time for desired efficiency of clarification for a given industrial wastewater using
recommended methods of testing. Scale-up factors used in this case range from 1.25 to 1.75 for
the overflow rate, and from 1.5 to 2.0 for detention time when converting laboratory results to
the prototype design.

For primary settling tanks treating municipal or domestic sewage, laboratory tests are generally
not necessary, and recommended design values given in table may be used. Using an
appropriate value of surface loading from table, the required tank area is computed. Knowing
the average depth, the detention time is then computed. Excessively high detention time (longer
than 2.5 h) must be avoided especially in warm climates where anaerobicity can be quickly
induced.

Design parameters for settling tank

Overflow rate Solids loading Detention

Types of settling Depth
m3m2/day kg/m2/day time
Average Peak Average Peak
2.5-
Primary settling only 25-30 50-60 - - 2.0-2.5
3.5
Primary settling followed by 60- 2.5-
35-50 - -
secondary treatment 120 3.5
Primary settling with activated 3.5-
25-35 50-60 - - -
sludge return 4.5
Secondary settling for trickling 2.5-
15-25 40-50 70-120 190 1.5-2.0
filters 3.5
Secondary settling for activated
3.5-
sludge (excluding extended 15-35 40-50 70-140 210 -
4.5
aeration)
Secondary settling for extended 3.5-
8-15 25-35 25-120 170 -
aeration 4.5

48 UNDER REVISION
 LECTURE-18
Classification of Micro organisms

1. Nutritional Requirements: On the basis of chemical form of carbon required,

microorganisms are classified as
a. Autotrophic: organisms that use CO2 or HCO3- as their sole source of carbon.
b. Heterotrophic: organisms that use carbon from organic compounds.
Energy Requirements: On the basis of energy source required, microorganisms are
classified as
. Phototrophs: organisms that use light as their energy source.
a. Chemotrophs: organisms that employ oxidation-reduction reactions to provide
energy. They are further classified on the basis of chemical compounds oxidized
(i.e., electron donor)
i. Chemoorganotrophs: Organisms that use complex organic molecules as
their electron donor.
ii. Chemoautotrophs: Organisms that use simple inorganic molecules such
as hydrogen sulfide or ammonia as their electron donor.
Temperature Range: On the basis of temperature range within which they can
proliferate, microorganisms are classified as
. Psychrophilic: organisms whose growth is optimum within 15 to 30°C.
a. Mesophilic: organisms whose growth is optimum within 30 to 45°C.
b. Thermophilic: organisms whose growth is optimum within 45 to 70°C.
Oxygen Requirements: On the basis of oxygen requirement microorganisms are
classified as
. Aerobes: organisms that use molecular oxygen as electron acceptor.
a. Anaerobes: organisms that use some molecule other than molecular oxygen as
electron acceptor.
b. Facultative organisms : organisms that can use either molecular oxygen or some
other chemical compound as electron acceptor.

Growth Pattern of Micro organisms

When a small number of viable bacterial cells are placed in a close vessel containing excessive
food supply in a suitable environment, conditions are established in which unrestricted growth
takes place. However, growth of an organism do not go on indefinitely, and after a characteristic
size is reached, the cell divides due to hereditary and internal limitations. The growth rate may
follow a pattern similar to as shown in figure

49 UNDER REVISION
The curve shown may be divided into six well defined phases:

1. Lag Phase:adaptation to new environment, long generation time and null growth rate.
2. Accelaration phase: decreasing generation time and increasing growth rate.
3. Exponential phase: minimal and constant generation time, maximal and constant
specific growth rate and maximum rate of substrate conversion.
4. Declining growth phase: increasing generation time and decreasing specific growth rate
due to gradual decrease in substrate concentration and increased accumulation of toxic
metabolites.
5. Stationary phase: exaustion of nutrients, high concentration of toxic metabolites, and
cells in a state of suspended animation.
6. Endogenous phase: endogenous metabolism, high death rate and cell lysis.

Biomass Growth Rate

The most widely used expression for the growth rate of micro organisms is given by Monod:

Total rate of microbial growth,dx = μ mXS

dt Ks+ S
where,
μ m=maximum specific growth rate
X = micro organism concentration
S = substrate concentration
Ks= substrate concentration at one half the maximum growth rate
Similarly, rate of substrate utilization,
dS= k X S
dt Ks+ S
where,
k = maximum specific substrate utilization rate

50 UNDER REVISION
Maintenance as Endogenous Respiration

Net growth rate of micro organisms is computed by subtracting from the total growth rate, the
rate of micro organisms endogenously decayed to satisfy maintenance energy requirement.
Therefore,

Net rate of microbial growth =μ mX S - kdX

Ks+ S
where, kd = endogenous decay coefficient

Growth Yield

Growth yield is defined as the incremental increase in biomass which results from the utilization
of the incremental amount of substrate. The maximum specific growth rate is given by: m =Y.k

where, Y is the maximum yield coefficient and is defined as the ratio of maximum mass of cells
formed to the mass of substrate utilized. The coefficients Y, k d, k and Ks are designated as
kinetic coefficients. The values of kinetic coefficients depend upon the nature of wastewater and
operational and environmental conditions in biological reactor. The biological reactors can be
completely mixed flow or plug flow reactor with or without recycle.

Activated Sludge Process

The most common suspended growth process used for municipal wastewater treatment is the
activated sludge process as shown in figure:

51 UNDER REVISION
 LECTURE-19

Activated sludge plant involves:

1. wastewater aeration in the presence of a microbial suspension,

2. solid-liquid separation following aeration,
3. discharge of clarified effluent,
4. wasting of excess biomass, and
5. return of remaining biomass to the aeration tank.

In activated sludge process wastewater containing organic matter is aerated in an aeration

basin in which micro-organisms metabolize the suspended and soluble organic matter. Part of
organic matter is synthesized into new cells and part is oxidized to CO2 and water to derive
energy. In activated sludge systems the new cells formed in the reaction are removed from the
liquid stream in the form of a flocculent sludge in settling tanks. A part of this settled biomass,
described as activated sludge is returned to the aeration tank and the remaining forms waste or
excess sludge.

Activated Sludge Process Variables

The main variables of activated sludge process are the mixing regime, loading rate, and the flow
scheme.

52 UNDER REVISION
Mixing Regime

Generally two types of mixing regimes are of major interest in activated sludge process: plug
flow and complete mixing. In the first one, the regime is characterized by orderly flow of mixed
liquor through the aeration tank with no element of mixed liquor overtaking or mixing with any
other element. There may be lateral mixing of mixed liquor but there must be no mixing along
the path of flow.

In complete mixing, the contents of aeration tank are well stirred and uniform throughout. Thus,
at steady state, the effluent from the aeration tank has the same composition as the aeration
tank contents.

The type of mixing regime is very important as it affects (1) oxygen transfer requirements in the
aeration tank, (2) susceptibility of biomass to shock loads, (3) local environmental conditions in
the aeration tank, and (4) the kinetics governing the treatment process.

Loading Rate

A loading parameter that has been developed over the years is the hydraulic retention time
(HRT), θ, d
θ=V
Q
V= volume of aeration tank, m3, and Q= sewage inflow, m3/d

Another empirical loading parameter is volumetric organic loading which is defined as the
BOD applied per unit volume of aeration tank, per day.

A rational loading parameter which has found wider acceptance and is preferred is specific
substrate utilization rate, q, per day.
q= Q (SO - Se)
V X
A similar loading parameter is mean cell residence time or sludge retention time (SRT), θc, d
θc = VX
QwXr + (Q-QwXe)
where SO and Se are influent and effluent organic matter concentration respectively, measured
as BOD5 (g/m3), X, Xe and Xr are MLSS concentration in aeration tank, effluent and return
sludge respectively, and Qw= waste activated sludge rate.
Under steady state operation the mass of waste activated sludge is given by

QwXr = YQ (SO - Se) - kd XV

where Y= maximum yield coefficient (microbial mass synthesized / mass of substrate utilized)
and kd = endogenous decay rate (d-1) .

53 UNDER REVISION
From the above equation it is seen that 1/θc = Yq - kd

If the value of Se is small as compared SO, q may also be expressed as Food to

Microorganism ratio, F/M

F/M = Q(SO- Se) / XV = QSO / XV

The θc value adopted for design controls the effluent quality, and settleability and drainability of
biomass, oxygen requirement and quantity of waste activated sludge.

Flow Scheme

The flow scheme involves:

 the pattern of sewage addition

 the pattern of sludge return to the aeration tank and
 the pattern of aeration.

Sewage addition may be at a single point at the inlet end or it may be at several points along the
aeration tank. The sludge return may be directly from the settling tank to the aeration tank or
through a sludge reaeration tank. Aeration may be at a uniform rate or it may be varied from the
head of the aeration tank to its end.

Conventional System and its Modifications

The conventional system maintains a plug flow hydraulic regime. Over the years, several
modifications to the conventional system have been developed to meet specific treatment
objectives. In step aeration settled sewage is introduced at several points along the tank length
which produces more uniform oxygen demand throughout. Tapered aeration attempts to
supply air to match oxygen demand along the length of the tank. Contact stabilization provides
for reaeration of return activated sludge from from the final clarifier, which allows a smaller
aeration or contact tank. Completely mixed process aims at instantaneous mixing of the
influent waste and return sludge with the entire contents of the aeration tank. Extended aeration
process operates at a low organic load producing lesser quantity of well stabilized sludge.

Design Consideration

The items for consideration in the design of activated sludge plant are aeration tank capacity
and dimensions, aeration facilities, secondary sludge settling and recycle and excess sludge
wasting.

Aeration Tank

The volume of aeration tank is calculated for the selected value of c by assuming a suitable
value of MLSS concentration, X.

54 UNDER REVISION
VX = YQθc(SO - S)
1+kdθc
Alternately, the tank capacity may be designed from
F/M = QSO / XV
Hence, the first step in designing is to choose a suitable value of θc (or F/M) which depends on
the expected winter temperature of mixed liquor, the type of reactor, expected settling
characteristics of the sludge and the nitrification required. The choice generally lies between 5
days in warmer climates to 10 days in temperate ones where nitrification is desired alongwith
good BOD removal, and complete mixing systems are employed.

The second step is to select two interrelated parameters HRT, t and MLSS concentration. It
is seen that economy in reactor volume can be achieved by assuming a large value of X.
However, it is seldom taken to be more than 5000 g/m3. For typical domestic sewage, the MLSS
value of 2000-3000 mg/l if conventional plug flow type aeration system is provided, or 3000-
5000 mg/l for completely mixed types. Considerations which govern the upper limit are: initial
and running cost of sludge recirculation system to maintain a high value of MLSS, limitations of
oxygen transfer equipment to supply oxygen at required rate in small reactor volume, increased
solids loading on secondary clarifier which may necessitate a larger surface area, design criteria
for the tank and minimum HRT for the aeration tank.

The length of the tank depends upon the type of activated sludge plant. Except in the case of
extended aeration plants and completely mixed plants, the aeration tanks are designed as long
narrow channels. The width and depth of the aeration tank depends on the type of aeration
equipment employed. The depth control the aeration efficiency and usually ranges from 3 to 4.5
m. The width controls the mixing and is usually kept between 5 to 10 m. Width-depth ratio
should be adjusted to be between 1.2 to 2.2. The length should not be less than 30 or not
ordinarily longer than 100 m.

Oxygen Requirements

Oxygen is reqiured in the activated sludge process for the oxidation of a part of the influent
organic matter and also for the endogenous respiration of the micro-organisms in the system.
The total oxygen requirement of the process may be formulated as follows:
O2 required (g/d) = Q(SO - S) - 1.42 QwXr
f

55 UNDER REVISION
where, f = ratio of BOD5 to ultimate BOD and 1.42 = oxygen demand of biomass (g/g)

The formula does not allow for nitrification but allows only for carbonaceous BOD removal.

LECTURE-20
Aeration Facilities

The aeration facilities of the activated sludge plant are designed to provide the calculated
oxygen demand of the wastewater against a specific level of dissolved oxygen in the
wastewater.

Secondary Settling

Secondary settling tanks, which receive the biologically treated flow undergo zone or
compression settling. Zone settling occurs beyond a certain concentration when the particles
are close enough together that interparticulate forces may hold the particles fixed relative to one
another so that the whole mass tends to settle as a single layer or "blanket" of sludge. The rate
at which a sludge blanket settles can be determined by timing its position in a settling column
test whose results can be plotted as shown in figure.

Compression settling may occur at the bottom of a tank if particles are in such a concentration
as to be in physical contact with one another. The weight of particles is partly supported by the
lower layers of particles, leading to progressively greater compression with depth and thickening
of sludge. From the settling column test, the limiting solids flux required to reach any desired
underflow concentration can be estimated, from which the rquired tank area can be computed.

The solids load on the clarifier is estimated in terms of (Q+R)X, while the overflow rate or
surface loading is estimated in terms of flow Q only (not Q+R) since the quantity R is withdrawn
from the bottom and does not contribute to the overflow from the tank. The secondary settling
tank is particularly sensitive to fluctuations in flow rate and on this account it is recommended
that the units be designed not only for average overflow rate but also for peak overflow rates.
Beyond an MLSS concentration of 2000 mg/l the clarifier design is often controlled by the solids
loading rate rather than the overflow rate. Recommended design values for treating domestic
sewage in final clarifiers and mechanical thickeners (which also fall in this category of
compression settling) are given in lecture 22.

Sludge Recycle

The MLSS concentration in the aeration tank is controlled by the sludge recirculation rate and
the sludge settleability and thickening in the secondary sedimentation tank.
Qr = X
Q Xr-X

56 UNDER REVISION
where Qr = Sludge recirculation rate, m3/d

The sludge settleability is determined by sludge volume index (SVI) defined as volume occupied
in mL by one gram of solids in the mixed liquor after settling for 30 min. If it is assumed that
sedimentation of suspended solids in the laboratory is similar to that in sedimentation tank, then
Xr = 106/SVI. Values of SVI between 100 and 150 ml/g indicate good settling of suspended
solids. The Xr value may not be taken more than 10,000 g/m3 unless separate thickeners are
provided to concentrate the settled solids or secondary sedimentation tank is designed to yield a
higher value.

Excess Sludge Wasting

The sludge in the aeration tank has to be wasted to maintain a steady level of MLSS in the
system. The excess sludge quantity will increase with increasing F/M and decrease with
increasing temperature. Excess sludge may be wasted either from the sludge return line or
directly from the aeration tank as mixed liquor. The latter is preferred as the sludge
concentration is fairly steady in that case. The excess sludge generated under steady state
operation may be estimated by
θc = VX
QwXr

or QwXr = YQ (SO - S) - kd XV

Design of Completely Mixed Activated Sludge System

Design a completely mixed activated sludge system to serve 60000 people that will give a final
effluent that is nitrified and has 5-day BOD not exceeding 25 mg/l. The following design data is
available.

Sewage flow = 150 l/person-day = 9000 m3/day BOD5 = 54 g/person-day = 360 mg/l ; BODu =
1.47 BOD5Total kjeldahl nitrogen (TKN) = 8 g/person-day = 53 mg/l
Phosphorus = 2 g/person-day = 13.3 mg/l Winter temperature in aeration tank = 18°C Yield
coefficient Y = 0.6 ; Decay constant Kd = 0.07 per day ; Specific substrate utilization rate = 0.038
mg/l)-1 (h)-1 at 18°C Assume 30% raw BOD5 is removed in primary sedimentation, and BOD5
going to aeration is, therefore, 252 mg/l (0.7 x 360 mg/l).

Design:

(a) Selection of θc, t and MLSS concentration:

57 UNDER REVISION
Considering the operating temperature and the desire to have nitrification and good sludge
settling characteristics, adopt θc = 5d. As there is no special fear of toxic inflows, the HRT, t may
be kept between 3-4 h, and MLSS = 4000 mg/l.

(b) Effluent BOD5:

Substrate concentration, S = 1 (1/θc + kd)= 1 (1/5+ 0.07)
qY (0.038)(0.6)
S = 12 mg/l.

Assume suspended solids (SS) in effluent = 20 mg/l and VSS/SS =0.8.

If degradable fraction of volatile suspended solids (VSS) =0.7 (check later), BOD5 of VSS in
effluent = 0.7(0.8x20) = 11mg/l.
Thus, total effluent BOD5 = 12 + 11 = 23 mg/l (acceptable).

(c) Aeration Tank:

VX = YQθc(SO - S) where X = 0.8(4000) = 3200 mg/l
1+ kdθc

or 3200 V = (0.6)(5)(9000)(252-12)

[1 + (0.07)(5)]

V = 1500 m3
Detention time, t = 1500 x 24 = 4h
9000
F/M = (252-12)(9000) = 0.45 kg BOD5 per kg MLSS per day
(3200) (1500)
Let the aeration tank be in the form of four square shaped compartments operated in two
parallel rows, each with two cells measuring 11m x 11m x 3.1m

(d) Return Sludge Pumping:

If suspended solids concentration of return flow is 1% = 10,000 mg/l
R= MLSS = 0.67
(10000)-MLSS

Qr = 0.67 x 9000 = 6000 m3/d

(e) Surplus Sludge Production:

Net VSS produced QwXr = VX = (3200)(1500)(103/106) = 960 kg/d
θc (5)
or SS produced =960/0.8 = 1200 kg/d
If SS are removed as underflow with solids concentration 1% and assuming specific gravity of
sludge as 1.0,
Liquid sludge to be removed = 1200 x 100/1 = 120,000 kg/d= 120 m3/d

(f) Oxygen Requirement:

58 UNDER REVISION
For carbonaceous demand,

oxygen required = (BODu removed) - (BODu of solids leaving)

= 1.47 (2160 kg/d) - 1.42 (960 kg/d)
= 72.5 kg/h
For nitrification, oxygen required = 4.33 (TKN oxidized, kg/d)

Incoming TKN at 8.0 g/ person-day = 480 kg/day. Assume 30% is removed in primary
sedimentation and the balance 336 kg/day is oxidized to nitrates. Thus, oxygen required
= 4.33 x 336 = 1455 kg/day = 60.6 kg/h

Total oxygen required = 72.5 + 60.6 = 133 kg/h = 1.0 kg/kg of BODu removed.

Oxygen uptake rate per unit tank volume = 133/1500 = 90.6 mg/h/l tank volume

(g) Power Requirement:

Assume oxygenation capacity of aerators at field conditions is only 70% of the capacity at
standard conditions and mechanical aerators are capable of giving 2 kg oxygen per kWh at
standard conditions.
Power required = 136 = 97 kW (130 hp)
0.7 x 2
= (97 x 24 x 365) / 60,000 = 14.2 kWh/year/person

Theory of Aeration

Aeration is a gas-liquid mass transfer process in which the driving force in the liquid phase is the
concentration gradient (Cs - C) for slightly soluble gases.
Mass transfer per unit time =KL.a (Cs - C)
where, KL = Liquid film coefficient
=Diffusion coefficient of liquid (D)
Thickness of film (Y)
a = Interficial area per unit volume
Cs =saturation concentration at the gas-liquid interface and C = some lower value
in the body of the liquid.
The value of a increases as finer and finer droplets are formed, thus increasing the gas transfer.
However, in practice, it is not possible to measure this area and hence the overall coefficient
(KL.a) per unit time, is determined by experimentation.

Adjustment for Field Conditions

The oxygen transfer capacity under field conditions can be calculated from the standard oxygen
transfer capacity by the formula:
N = [Ns(Cs- CL)x 1.024T-20α]/9.2

59 UNDER REVISION
where,
N = oxygen transferred under field conditions, kg O2/h.
Ns= oxygen transfer capacity under standard conditions, kg O2/h.
Cs= DO saturation value for sewage at operating temperature.
CL= operating DO level in aeration tank usually 1 to 2 mg/L.
T = Temperature, degree C.
α = Correction factor for oxygen transfer for sewage, usually 0.8 to 0.85.

Aeration Facilities

 Oxygen may be supplied either by surface aerators or diffused aerators employing fine
or coarse diffusers.
 The aeration devices apart from supplying the required oxygen shall also provide
adequate mixing in order that the entire MLSS present in the aeration tank will be
available for biological activity.
 Aerators are rated based on the amount of oxygen they can transfer to tap water under
standard conditions of 20°C, 760 mm Hg barometric pressure and zero DO.

LECTURE-21
Trickling Filters

 Trickling filter is an attached growth process i.e. process in which microorganisms

responsible for treatment are attached to an inert packing material. Packing material
used in attached growth processes include rock, gravel, slag, sand, redwood, and a wide
range of plastic and other synthetic materials.

Process Description

 The wastewater in trickling filter is distributed over the top area of a vessel containing
non-submerged packing material.
 Air circulation in the void space, by either natural draft or blowers, provides oxygen for
the microorganisms growing as an attached biofilm.
 During operation, the organic material present in the wastewater is metabolised by the
biomass attached to the medium. The biological slime grows in thickness as the organic
matter abstracted from the flowing wastewater is synthesized into new cellular material.
 The thickness of the aerobic layer is limited by the depth of penetration of oxygen into
the microbial layer.
 The micro-organisms near the medium face enter the endogenous phase as the
substrate is metabolised before it can reach the micro-organisms near the medium face
as a result of increased thickness of the slime layer and loose their ability to cling to the
media surface. The liquid then washes the slime off the medium and a new slime layer
starts to grow. This phenomenon of losing the slime layer is called sloughing.

60 UNDER REVISION
  The sloughed off film and treated wastewater are collected by an underdrainage which
also allows circulation of air through filter. The collected liquid is passed to a settling tank
used for solid- liquid separation.

Types of Filters

Trickling filters are classified as high rate or low rate, based on the organic and hydraulic
loading applied to the unit.

Low Rate
S.No. Design Feature High Rate Filter
Filter
Hydraulic loading,
1. 1-4 10 - 40
m3/m2.d
Organic loading,kg
2. 3 0.08 - 0.32 0.32 - 1.0
BOD / m .d
3. Depth, m. 1.8 - 3.0 0.9 - 2.5
0.5 - 3.0 (domestic wastewater) upto 8
4. Recirculation ratio 0
for strong industrial wastewater.

61 UNDER REVISION
  The hydraulic loading rate is the total flow including recirculation appied on unit area of
the filter in a day, while the organic loading rate is the 5 day 20°C BOD, excluding the
BOD of the recirculant, applied per unit volume in a day.
 Recirculation is generally not adopted in low rate filters.
 A well operated low rate trickling filter in combination with secondary settling tank may
remove 75 to 90% BOD and produce highly nitrified effluent. It is suitable for treatment of
low to medium strength domestic wastewaters.
 The high rate trickling filter, single stage or two stage are recommended for medium to
relatively high strength domestic and industrial wastewater. The BOD removal efficiency
is around 75 to 90% but the effluent is only partially nitrified.
 Single stage unit consists of a primary settling tank, filter, secondary settling tank and
facilities for recirculation of the effluent. Two stage filters consist of two filters in series
with a primary settling tank, an intermediate settling tank which may be omitted in certain
cases and a final settling tank.

Process Design

Generally trickling filter design is based on empirical relationships to find the required filter
volume for a designed degree of wastewater treatment. Types of equations:

1. NRC equations (National Research Council of USA)

2. Rankins equation
3. Eckenfilder equation

62 UNDER REVISION
 4. Galler and Gotaas equation

NRC and Rankin's equations are commonly used. NRC equations give satisfactory values when
there is no re-circulation, the seasonal variations in temperature are not large and fluctuations
with high organic loading. Rankin's equation is used for high rate filters.

NRC equations: These equations are applicable to both low rate and high rate filters. The
efficiency of single stage or first stage of two stage filters, E2 is given by
E2= 100
1+0.44(F1.BOD/V1.Rf1)1/2
For the second stage filter, the efficiency E3 is given by

E3= 100

[(1+0.44)/(1- E2)](F2.BOD/V2.Rf2)1/2

where E2= % efficiency in BOD removal of single stage or first stage of two-stage filter, E3=%
efficiency of second stage filter, F1.BOD= BOD loading of settled raw sewage in single stage of
the two-stage filter in kg/d, F2.BOD= F1.BOD(1- E2)= BOD loading on second-stage filter in kg/d, V1=
volume of first stage filter, m3; V2= volume of second stage filter, m3; Rf1= Recirculation factor for
first stage, R1= Recirculation ratio for first stage filter, Rf 2= Recirculation factor for second stage,
R2= Recirculation ratio for second stage filter.

Rankins equation: This equation also known as Tentative Method of Ten States USA has been
successfully used over wide range of temperature. It requires following conditions to be
observed for single stage filters:

1. Raw settled domestic sewage BOD applied to filters should not exceed 1.2 kg
BOD5/day/ m3 filter volume.
2. Hydraulic load (including recirculation) should not exceed 30 m3/m2 filter surface-day.

Recirculation ratio (R/Q) should be such that BOD entering filter (including recirculation) is not
more than three times the BOD expected in effluent. This implies that as long as the above
conditions are satisfied efficiency is only a function of recirculation and is given by:
E = (R/Q) + 1
(R/Q) + 1.5

LECTURE-22
Other Aerobic Treatment Units

63 UNDER REVISION
 1. Stabilization ponds: The stabilization ponds are open flow through basins specifically
designed and constructed to treat sewage and biodegradable industrial wastes. They
provide long detention periods extending from a few to several days.
2. Aerated lagoons: Pond systems, in which oxygen is provided through mechanical
aeration rather than algal photosynthesis are called aerated lagoons.
3. Oxidation ditch: The oxidation ditch is a modified form of "extended aeration" of
activated sludge process. The ditch consists of a long continuous channel oval in shape
with two surface rotors placed across the channel.

Anaerobic Treatment

The anaerobic waste treatment process is an effective method for the treatment of many
organic wastes. The treatment has a number of advantages over aerobic treatment process,
namely,

 the energy input of the system is low as no energy is requred for oxygenation,
 lower production of excess sludge( biological synthesis) per unit mass of substrate
utilized,
 lower nutrient requirement due to lower biological synthesis, and
 degradation leads to production of biogas which is a valuable source of energy.

Fundamental Microbiology

The anaerobic treatment of organic wastes resulting in the production of carbon dioxide and
methane, involves two distinct stages. In the first stage, complex waste components, including
fats, proteins, and polysaccharides are first hydrolyzed by a heterogeneous group of facultative
and anaerobic bacteria. These bacteria then subject the products of hydrolysis to fermentations,
-oxidations, and other metabolic processes leading to the formation of simple organic
compounds, mainly short-chain (volatile) acids and alcohols. The first stage is commonly
referred to as "acid fermentation". However in the second stage the end products of the first
stage are converted to gases (mainly methane and carbon dioxide) by several different species
of strictly anaerobic bacteria. This stage is generally referred to as "methane fermentation".

64 UNDER REVISION
The primary acids produced during acid fermentation are propionic and acetic acid. It is reported
that only one group of methane bacteria is necessary for methane fermentation of acetic acid,
whereas propionic acid, which is fermented through acetic acid requires two different groups of
methane bacteria. The methane fermentation reactions for these two acids are:

The bacteria responsible for acid fermentation are relatively tolerant to changes in pH and
temperature and have a much higher rate of growth than the bacteria responsible for methane
fermentation. As a result, methane fermentation is generally assumed to be the rate limiting step
in anaerobic wastewater treatment.

. Anaerobic Reactor

Various types of anaerobic units that have been developed are as follows:

 Upflow anaerobic filters packed with either pebbles, stones, PVC sheets, etc. as
media to support submerged biological growths (fixed film). The units are reported to
work well but a likely problem is accumulation of solids in the interstices.

65 UNDER REVISION
  Downflow anaerobic filters packed with similar media as above but not to be confused
with usual trickling filters which are aerobic. In the anaerobic units, the inlet and outlet
are so placed that the media and fixed film stay submerged.
 UASB type units in which no special media have to be used since the sludge granules
themselves act as the 'media' and stay in suspension. These are commonly preffered.
 Fluidized bed units filled with sand or plastic granules are used with recirculation under
required pressure to keep the entire mass fluidized and the sludge distributed over the
entire reactor volume. Their power consumption is higher.

LECTURE-23
UASB Units

UASB type units are one in which no special media have to be used since the sludge granules
themselves act as the 'media' and stay in suspension. UASB system is not patented. A typical
arrangement of a UASB type treatment plant for municipal sewage would be as follows:

1. Initial pumping
2. Screening and degritting
3. Main UASB reactor
4. Gas collection and conversion or conveyance
5. Sludge drying bed
6. Post treatment facility

In the UASB process, the whole waste is passed through the anaerobic reactor in an upflow
mode, with a hydraulic retention time (HRT) of only about 8-10 hours at average flow. No prior
sedimentation is required. The anaerobic unit does not need to be filled with stones or any other
media; the upflowing sewage itself forms millions of small "granules" or particles of sludge which
are held in suspension and provide a large surface area on which organic matter can attach and
undergo biodegradation. A high solid retention time (SRT) of 30-50 or more days occurs within
the unit. No mixers or aerators are required. The gas produced can be collected and used if
desired. Anaerobic systems function satisfactorily when temperatures inside the reactor are
above 18-20°C. Excess sludge is removed from time to time through a separate pipe and sent
to a simple sand bed for drying.

Design Approach

Size of Reactor: Generally, UASBs are considered where temperature in the reactors will be
above 20°C. At equilibrium condition, sludge withdrawn has to be equal to sludge produced
daily. The sludge produced daily depends on the characteristics of the raw wastewater since it
is the sum total of (i) the new VSS produced as a result of BOD removal, the yield coefficient
being assumed as 0.1 g VSS/ g BOD removed, (ii) the non-degradable residue of the VSS
coming in the inflow assuming 40% of the VSS are degraded and residue is 60%, and (iii) Ash
received in the inflow, namely TSS-VSS mg/l. Thus, at steady state conditions,

66 UNDER REVISION
SRT= Total sludge present in reactor, kg
Sludge withdrawn per day, kg/d
= 30 to 50 days.
Another parameter is HRT which is given by:
HRT= Reactor volume, m3
Flow rate, m3/h
= 8 to 10 h or more at average flow.
The reactor volume has to be so chosen that the desired SRT value is achieved. This is done by
solving for HRT from SRT equation assuming (i) depth of reactor (ii) the effective depth of the
sludge blanket, and (iii) the average concentration of sludge in the blanket (70 kg/m 3). The full
depth of the reactor for treating low BOD municipal sewage is often 4.5 to 5.0 m of which the
sludge blanket itself may be 2.0 to 2.5 m depth. For high BOD wastes, the depth of both the
sludge blanket and the reactor may have to be increased so that the organic loading on solids
may be kept within the prescribed range.
Once the size of the reactor is fixed, the upflow velocity can be determined from
Upflow velocity m/h = Reactor height
HRT, h
Using average flow rate one gets the average HRT while the peak flow rate gives the minimum
HRT at which minimum exposure to treatment occurs. In order to retain any flocculent sludge in
reactor at all times, experience has shown that the upflow velocity should not be more than 0.5
m/h at average flow and not more than 1.2 m/h at peak flow. At higher velocities, carry over of
solids might occur and effluent quality may be deteriorated. The feed inlet system is next
designed so that the required length and width of the UASB reactor are determined.

The settling compartment is formed by the sloping hoods for gas collection. The depth of the
compartment is 2.0 to 2.5 m and the surface overflow rate kept at 20 to 28 m 3/m2-day (1 to 1.2
m/h) at peak flow. The flow velocity through the aperture connecting the reaction zone with the
settling compartment is limited to not more than 5 m/h at peak flow. Due attention has to be paid
to the geometry of the unit and to its hydraulics to ensure proper working of the "Gas-Liquid-
Solid-Separator (GLSS)" the gas collection hood, the incoming flow distribution to get spatial
uniformity and the outflowing effluent.

Physical Parameters

A single module can handle 10 to 15 MLD of sewage. For large flows a number of modules
could be provided. Some physical details of a typical UASB reactor module are given below:

67 UNDER REVISION
Reactor
Rectangular or circular. Rectangular shape is preferred
configuration
Depth 4.5 to 5.0 m for sewage.
To limit lengths of inlet laterals to around 10-12 m for facilitating uniform
Width or diameter
flow distribution and sludge withdrawal.
Length As necessary.
gravity feed from top (preferred for municipal sewage) or pumped feed
Inlet feed from bottom through manifold and laterals (preferred in case of soluble
industrial wastewaters).
Sludge blanket
2 to 2.5 m for sewage. More depth is needed for stronger wastes.
depth
This is a deflector beam which together with the gas hood (slope 60)
forms a "gas-liquid-solid-separator" (GLSS) letting the gas go to the gas
collection channel at top, while the liquid rises into the settler
Deflector/GLSS compartment and the sludge solids fall back into the sludge
compartment. The flow velocity through the aperture connecting the
reaction zone with the settling compartmentt is generally limited to about
5m/h at peak flow.
2.0-2.5 m in depth. Surface overflow rate equals 20-28 m3/m2/d at peak
Settler compartment
flow.

Process Design Parameters

A few process design parameters for UASBs are listed below for municipal sewages with BOD
about 200-300 mg/l and temperatures above 20°C.

8-10 hours at average flow (minimum 4 hours at

HRT
peak flow)
SRT 30-50 days or more
Sludge blanket concentration (average) 15-30 kg VSS per m3. About 70 kg TSS per m3.
0.3-1.0 kg COD/kg VSS day (even upto 10 kg COD/
Organic loading on sludge blanket
kg VSS day for agro-industrial wastes).
1-3 kg COD/m3 day for domestic sewage (10-15 kg
Volumetric organic loading
COD/m3 day for agro-industrial wastes)
BOD/COD removal efficiency Sewage 75-85% for BOD. 74-78% for COD.
Inlet points Minimum 1 point per 3.7-4.0 m2 floor area.
Flow regime Either constant rate for pumped inflows or typically

68 UNDER REVISION
 fluctuating flows for gravity systems.
About 0.5 m/h at average flow, or 1.2 m/h at peak
Upflow velocity
flow, whichever is low.
Sludge production 0.15-0.25 kg TS per m3 sewage treated.
Sludge drying time Seven days (in India)
Theoretical 0.38 m3/kg COD removed. Actual 0.1-0.3
Gas production
m3 per kg COD removed.
Method of use is optional. 1 m3 biogas with 75%
Gas utilization
methane content is equivalent to 1.4 kWh electricity.
Nutrients nitrogen and phosphorus
5 to 10% only.
removal

LECTURE-24
Nitrification-Denitrification Systems

A certain amount of nitrogen removal (20-30%) occurs in conventional activated sludge

systems. Nitrogen removal ranging from 70 to 90 % can be obtained by use of nitrification-
denitrification method in plants based on activated sludge and other suspended growth
systems. Biological denitrification requires prior nitrification of all ammonia and organic nitrogen
in the incoming waste.

Nitrification

There are two groups of chemoautotrophic bacteria that can be associated with the process of
nitrification. One group (Nitrosomonas) derives its energy through the oxidation of ammonium to
nitrite, whereas the other group (Nitrobacter) obtains energy through the oxidation of nitrite to
nitrate. Both the groups, collectively called Nitrifiers, obtain carbon required, from inorganic
carbon forms. Nitrification of ammonia to nitrate is a two step process:

Nitrosomonas Nitrobacter
NH3 NH4 NO2 NO3

Stoichiometrically, 4.6 kg of oxygen is required for nitrifying 1 kg of nitrogen. Under steady state
conditions, experimental evidence has shown nitrite accumulation to be insignificant. This
suggests that the rate-limiting step for the conversion of ammonium to nitrate is the oxidation of
ammonium to nitrite by the genus Nitrosomonas.

Combined and Separate Systems of Biological Oxidation & Nitrification

69 UNDER REVISION
Following figure shows flow sheets for combined and separate systems for biological oxidation
and nitrification.

Combined system is favoured method of operation as it is less sensitive to load variations -

owing to larger sized aeration tank - generally produces a smaller volume of surplus sludge
owing to higher values of c adopted, and better sludge settleability.

Care should be taken to ensure that the oxygenation capacity of aeration tank is sufficient to
meet oxygen uptake due to carbonaceous demand and nitrification. Recycling of sludge must
be rapid enough to prevent denitrification (and rising sludge) owing to anoxic conditions in the
settling tank.

In separate system, the first tank can be smaller in size since a higher F/M ratio can be used,
but this makes the system somewhat more sensitive to load variations and also tends to
produce more sludge for disposal. An additional settling tank is also necessary between the two
aeration tanks to keep the two sludges separate. A principal advantage of this system is its
higher efficiency of nitrification and its better performance when toxic substances are feared to
be in the inflow.

. Biological Denitrification

When a treatment plant discharges into receivingstream with lowavailable nitrogen

concentration and with a flow much larger than the effluent, the presence of nitrate in the
effluent generally does not adversely affect stream quality. However,if the nitrate concentration
in the stream is significant, it may be desirable to control the nitrogen contentof the effluent, as
highly nitrified effluents can stillaccelarate algal blooms. Even more critical is the case where
treatment plant effluent is dischargeddirectly into relatively still bodies of water such as lakes or
reservoirs. Another argument for the controlof nitrogen in the aquatic environment is
theoccurence of infantile methemoglobinemia,which results from high concentration of nitrates
indrinking water.

The four basic processes that are used are: (1) ammonia stripping,(2) selective ion exchange,
(3) break point chlorination, and (4) biological nitrification/denitrification.

Biological nitrification/denitrification is a two step process. The first step is nitrification, which
is conversion of ammonia to nitrate through the action of nitrifying bacteria. The second step is

70 UNDER REVISION
nitrate conversion (denitrification), which is carried out by facultative heterotrophic bacteria
under anoxic conditions.

Microbiological Aspects of Denitrification

 Nitrate conversion takes place through both assimilatory and dissimilatory cellular
functions. In assimilatory denitrification, nitrate is reduced to ammonia, which then
serves as a nitrogen source for cell synthesis. Thus, nitrogen is removed from the liquid
stream by incorporating it into cytoplasmic material.
 In dissimilatory denitrification, nitrate serves as the electron acceptor in energy
metabolism and is converted to various gaseous end products but principally molecular
nitrogen, N2, which is then stripped from the liquid stream.
 Because the microbial yield under anoxic conditions is considerably lower than under
aerobic conditions, a relatively small fraction of the nitrogen is removed through
assimilation. Dissimilatory denitrification is, therfore, the primary means by which
nitrogen removal is achieved.
 A carbon source is also essential as electron donor for denitrification to take place. This
source may be in the form of carbon internally available in sewage or artificially added
(eg. as methanol). Since most community wastewaters have a higher ratio of BOD:N,
the internally available carbon becomes attractive and economical for denitrification.

Denitrification releases nitrogen which escapes as an inert gas to the atmosphere while
oxygen released stays dissolved in the liquid and thus reduces the oxygen input needed
into the system. Each molecule of nitrogen needs 4 molecules of oxygen during
nitrification but releases back 2.5 molecules in denitrification. Thus, theoretically, 62.5%
of the oxygen used is released back in denitrification.

Typical Flowsheets for Denitrification

Denitrification in suspended growth systems can be achieved using anyone of the typical
flowsheets shown in the figure.

 The use of methanol or any other artificial carbon source should be avoided as far as
possible since it adds to the cost of treatment and also some operating difficulties may
arise fro dosing rate of methanol. Too much would introduce an unnecessary BOD in the
effluent while too little would leave some nitrates undernitrified.
 A more satisfactory arrangement would be to use the carbon contained in the waste
itself. However, the anoxic tank has to be of sufficient detention time for denitrification to
occur which, has a slower rate; since the corresponding oxygen uptake rate of the mixed
liquor is mainly due to endogenous respiration and is thus low. The denitrification rate,
therefore, in a way also depends on the F/M ratio in the prior aeration tank.
 Consequently, if desired, a portion of the raw waste may be bypassed to enter directly
into the anoxic tank and thus contribute to an increased respiration rate. This reduces

71 UNDER REVISION
 the sizes of both the anoxic and aeration tanks, but the denitrification efficiency is
reduced as the bypassed unnitrified ammonia can not be denitrified.
 By reversing the relative positions of anoxic and aerobic tanks, the oxygen requirement
of the waste in its anoxic state is met by the release of oxygen from nitrates in the
recycled flow taken from the end of nitrification tank. Primary settling of the raw waste
may be omitted so as to bring more carbon into the anoxic tank.
 More complete nitrification-denitrification can be achieved by Bardenpho arrangement.
The first anoxic tank has the advantage of higher denitrification rate while the nitrates
remaining in the liquor passing out of the tank can be denitrified further in a second
anoxic tank through endogenous respiration.
 The flow from anoxic tank is desirable to reaerate for 10-15 minutes to drive off nitrogen
gas bubbles and add oxygen prior to sedimentation.

72 UNDER REVISION
Removal

Phosphorus precipitation is ususally achieved by addition of chemicals like calcium hydroxide,

ferrous or ferric chloride, or alum, either in the primary or the final settling tank.

Alum is more expensive and generates more hydroxide, which creates extra sludge, that is
difficult to dewater. Use of lime results in an increase of approximately 50% in surplus sludge,
but the sludge is reported to have good dewatering properties. When using iron salts, a molar
ratio of 1.0:1.4 of iron to phosphorus is reported to give 91-96% removal of total phosphorus
using ferrous chloride dosed directly beneath the aerator.

Chemical addition prior to biological treatment is feasible if a primary settling tank exists as in
the case of the conventional activated sludge process. The dose requirement then increases,
but chemical precipitation also improves organic removal, thus reducing BOD load on the
biological treatment. For extended aeration plants there is no primary settling; chemical addition
has to be done in the final settling tank.

. LECTURE-25
Residual Management

In all biological waste treatment processes some surplus sludge is produced. The objective of
residual management is:

 Reduction of water content.

 Stabilization of sludge solids.
 Reduction in sludge solids volume.

In facultative type aerated lagoons and algal waste stabilization ponds, the surplus sludge
settles out in the unit itself and is removed only once in a few years after emptying the unit,
exposing the wet sludge to natural drying, and carting away the dried sludge for agricultural use
or land filling.

73 UNDER REVISION
In extended aeration process where aerobic digestion of surplus sludge is done, the sludge
can be taken directly for dewatering and disposal.

In case of activated sludge and trickling filter plants, the sludge is taken (along with the
primary sludge) to a sludge digester for further demineralization and thereafter it is dewatered.

Sludge Dewatering Methods

 Natural: sludge drying beds, sludge lagoons

 Mechanical: sludge thickeners, centrifuges, vacuum filters, filter press
 Physical: heat drying, incineration

Disposal of Sludge

Final disposal of sludge is to land and sometimes to the sea, in one of the following ways:

 Agricultural use of dried or wet sludge.

 Use of dried sludge as landfill in absence of agricultural demand.
 Spreading wet sludge on eroded or waste land, contouring the field, so as to gradually
build up a top soil of agricultural value.
 Disposing off wet sludge along with solid wastes for (i) composting, or (ii) sanitary
landfill.
 Transporting and dumping into the sea.

Sludge Characteristics

For the rational design of sludge drying systems, it is esstential to know a few characteristics of
sludges, such as moisture content as affected by the nature and extent of organic and other
matter contained in them, their specific gravity, weight and volume relationships, their
dewatering characteristics, etc. The specific gravity of sludge is very close to that of water itself,
1.01 for biological sludge and 1.02 from alum sludge.

Stepwise reduction in moisture content in dewatering extended aeration sludge

Sludge source Moisture content Weight, g/person-day

% by weight Solids Water Total
Initial moisture content 99 30 2970 3000
After thickening 96 30 720 750
After other mechanical process 90 30 270 300
After natural or physical drying 60 30 45 75

It is evident that the bulk of the water is removed in the thickener. Thereafter, the bulk of the
remaining moisture is removed in free drainage. Evaporation removes the least but, in fact,

74 UNDER REVISION
takes the longest time. The final "dried" sludge still has considerable moisture in it, but the
sludge is now "handleable".

Sand Beds for Sludge Drying

Sand beds are generally constructed as shown in the typical cross-sectional view.

Sludge is generally spread over the sand which is supported on a gravel bed, through which is
laid an open-joint earthen pipe 15 cm in diameter spaced about 3 m apart and sloping at a
gradient of 1 in 150 towards the filtrate sump. The drying beds are often subdivided into smaller
units, each bed 5-8 m wide and 15-50 m long. The drying time averages about 1-2 weeks in
warmer climates, and 3-6 or even more in unfavourable ones.

LECTURE-26
Sludge Digestion

Sludge digestion involves the treatment of highly concentrated organic wastes in the absence of
oxygen by anaerobic bacteria.The anaerobic treatment of organic wastes resulting in the
production of carbon dioxide and methane, involves two distinct stages. In the first stage,
referred to as "acid fermentation", complex waste components, including fats, proteins, and
polysaccharides are first hydrolyzed by a heterogeneous group of facultative and anaerobic
bacteria. These bacteria then subject the products of hydrolysis to fermentations, b-oxidations,
and other metabolic processes leading to the formation of simple organic compounds, mainly
short-chain (volatile) acids and alcohols. However in the second stage, referred to as "methane
fermentation", the end products of the first stage are converted to gases (mainly methane and
carbon dioxide) by several different species of strictly anaerobic bacteria.

The bacteria responsible for acid fermentation are relatively tolerant to changes in pH and
temperature and have a much higher rate of growth than the bacteria responsible for methane
fermentation. If the pH drops below 6.0, methane formation essentially ceases, and more acid
accumulates, thus bringing the digestion process to a standstill. As a result, methane
fermentation is generally assumed to be the rate limiting step in anaerobic wastewater

75 UNDER REVISION
treatment. The methane bacteria are highly active in mesophilic (27-43°C) with digestion period
of four weeks and thermophilic range (35-40°C) with digestion period of 15-18 days. But
thermophilic range is not practised because of odour and operational difficulties.

Digestion Tanks or Digesters

A sludge digestion tank is a RCC or steel tank of cylindrical shape with hopper bottom and is
covered with fixed or floating type of roofs.

Types of Anaerobic Digesters

The anaerobic digesters are of two types: standard rate and high rate. In the standard rate
digestion process, the digester contents are usually unheated and unmixed. The digestion
period may vary from 30 to 60 d. In a high rate digestion process, the digester contents are
heated and completely mixed. The required detention period is 10 to 20 d.

76 UNDER REVISION
Often a combination of standard and high rate digestion is achieved in two-stage digestion. The
second stage digester mainly separates the digested solids from the supernatant liquor:
although additional digestion and gas recovery may also be achieved.

Design Details

Generally digesters are designed to treat for a capacity upto 4 MLD.

1. Tank sizes are not less than 6 m diameter and not more than 55 m diameter.
2. Liquid depth may be 4.5 to 6 m and not greater than 9 m.
3. The digester capacity may be determined from the relationship

77 UNDER REVISION
 V = [Vf-2/3 (Vf - Vd)]t1 + Vdt2

where V = capacity of digester in m3, Vf = volume of fresh sludge m3/d, Vd = volume of

daily digested sludge accumulation in tank m3/d, t1= digestion time in days required for
digestion, d, and t2 = period of digested sludge storage.

Gas Collection

The amount of sludge gas produced varies from 0.014 to 0.028 m3 per capita. The sludge gas is
normally composed of 65% methane and 30% carbondioxide and remaining 5% of nitrogen and
other inert gases, with a calorific value of 5400 to 5850 kcal/m3.

Treatment Plant Layout and Siting

Plant layout is the arrangement of designed treatment units on the selected site. The
components that need to be included in a treatment plant, should be so laid out as to optimize
land requirement, minimize lengths of interconnecting pipes and pumping heads. Access for
sludge and chemicals transporting, and for possible repairs, should be provided in the layout.

Siting is the selection of site for treatment plant based on features as character, topography,
and shoreline. Site development should take the advantage of the existing site topography. The
following principles are important to consider:

1. A site on a side-hill can facilitate gravity flow that will reduce pumping requirements and
locate normal sequence of units without excessive excavation or fill.
2. When landscaping is utilized it should reflect the character of the surrounding area. Site
development should alter existing naturally stabilized site contours and drainage as little
as possible.
3. The developed site should be compatible with the existing land uses and the
comprehensive development plan.

LECTURE-27
Treatment Plant Hydraulics

Hydraulic profile is the graphical representation of the hydraulic grade line through the
treatment plant. If the high water level in the receiving water is known, this level is used as a
control point, and the head loss computations are started backward through the plant. The total
available head at the treatment plant is the difference in water surface elevations in the
interceptor and the water surface elevation in the receiving water at high flood level. If the total
available head is less than the head loss through the plant, flow by gravity cannot be achieved.
In such cases pumping is needed to raise the head so that flow by gravity can occur.

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There are many basic principles that must be considered when preparing the hydraulic profile
through the plant. Some are listed below:

1. The hydraulic profiles are prepared at peak and average design flows and at minimum
initial flow.
2. The hydraulic profile is generally prepared for all main paths of flow through the plant.
3. The head loss through the treatment plant is the sum of head losses in the treatment
units and the connecting piping and appurtenances.
4. The head losses through the treatment unit include the following:
a. Head losses at the influent structure.
b. Head losses at the effluent structure.
c. Head losses through the unit.
d. Miscellaneous and free fall surface allowance.
5. The total loss through the connecting pipings, channels and appurtenances is the sum of
following:
a. Head loss due to entrance.
b. Head loss due to exit.
c. Head loss due to contraction and enlargement.
d. Head loss due to friction.
e. Head loss due to bends, fittings, gates, valves, and meters.
f. Head required over weir and other hydraulic controls.
g. Free-fall surface allowance.

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 LECTURE-28
Treated Effluent Disposal

The proper disposal of treatment plant effluent or reuse requirements is an essential part of
planning and designing wastewater treatment facilities. Different methods of ultimate disposal of
secondary effluents are discussed as follows.

Natural Evaporation

The process involves large impoundments with no discharge. Depending on the climatic
conditions large impoundments may be necessary if precipitation exceeds evaporation.
Therefore, considerations must be given to net evaporation, storage requirements, and possible
percolation and groundwater pollution. This method is particularly beneficial where recovery of
residues is desirable such as for disposal of brines.

Groundwater Recharge

Methods for groundwater recharge include rapid infiltration by effluent application or

impoundment, intermittent percolation, and direct injection. In all cases risks for groundwater

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pollution exists. Furthermore, direct injection implies high costs of treating effluent and injection
facilities.

Irrigation

Irrigation has been practiced primarily as a substitute for scarce natural waters or sparse rainfall
in arid areas. In most cases food chain crops (i.e. crops consumed by humans and those
animals whose products are consumed by humans) may not be irrigated by effluent. However,
field crops such as cotton, sugar beets, and crops for seed production are grown with
wastewater effluent.

Wastewater effluent has been used for watering parks, golf courses and highway medians.

Recreational Lakes

The effluent from the secondary treatment facility is stored in a lagoon for approximately 30
days. The effluent from the lagoon is chlorinated and then percolated through an area of sand
and gravel, through which it travels for approximately 0.5 km and is collected in an interceptor
trench. It is discharged into a series of lakes used for swimming, boating and fishing.

Aquaculture

Aquaculture, or the production of aquatic organisms (both flora and fauna), has been practiced
for centuries primarily for production of food, fiber and fertilizer. Lagoons are used for
aquaculture, although artificial and natural wetlands are also being considered. However, the
uncontrolled spread of water hyacinths is itself a great concern because the flora can clog
waterways and ruin water bodies.

Municipal Uses

Technology is now available to treat wastewater to the extent that it will meet drinking water
quality standards. However, direct reuse of treated wastewater is practicable only on an
emergency basis. Many natural bodies of water that are used for municipal water supply are
also used for effluent disposal which is done to supplement the natural water resources by
reusing the effluent many times before it finally flows to the sea.

Industrial Uses

Effluent has been successfully used as a cooling water or boiler feed water. Deciding factors for
effluent reuse by the industry include (1) availability of natural water, (2) quality and quantity of
effluent, and cost of processing, (3) pumping and transport cost of effluent, and (4) industrial
process water that does not involve public health considerations.

Discharge into Natural Waters

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Discharge into natural waters is the most common disposal practice. The self-purification or
assimilative capacity of natural waters is thus utilized to provide the remaining treatment.

Stabilization Ponds

 The stabilization ponds are open flow through basins specifically designed and
constructed to treat sewage and biodegradable industrial wastes. They provide long
detention periods extending from a few to several days.
 Pond systems, in which oxygen is provided through mechanical aeration rather than
algal photosynthesis are called aerated lagoons.
 Lightly loaded ponds used as tertiary step in waste treatment for polishing of secondary
effluents and removal of bacteria are called maturation ponds.

Classification of Stabilization Ponds

Stabilization ponds may be aerobic, anaerobic or facultative.

 Aerobic ponds are shallow ponds with depth less than 0.5 m and BOD loading of 40-
120 kg/ha.d so as to maximize penetration of light throughout the liquid depth. Such
ponds develop intense algal growth.
 Anaerobic ponds are used as pretreatment of high strength wastes with BOD load of
400-3000 kg/ha.d Such ponds are constructed with a depth of 2.5-5m as light
penetration is unimportant.
 Facultative pond functions aerobically at the surface while anaerobic conditions prevail
at the bottom.They are often about 1 to 2 m in depth. The aerobic layer acts as a good
check against odour evolution from the pond.

Mechanism of Purification

The functioning of a facultative stabilization pond and symbiotic relationship in the pond are
shown below. Sewage organics are stabilized by both aerobic and anaerobic reactions. In the
top aerobic layer, where oxygen is supplied through algal photosynthesis, the non-settleable
and dissolved organic matter is oxidized to CO2 and water. In addition, some of the end
products of partial anaerobic decomposition such as volatile acids and alcohols, which may
permeate to upper layers are also oxidized periodically. The settled sludge mass originating
from raw waste and microbial synthesis in the aerobic layer and dissolved and suspended
organics in the lower layers undergo stabilization through conversion to methane which escapes
the pond in form of bubbles.

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 LECTURE-29
Factors Affecting Pond Reactions

Various factors affect pond design:

 wastewater characteristics and fluctuations.

 environmental factors (solar radiation, light, temperature)
 algal growth patterns and their diurnal and seasonal variation)
 bacterial growth patterns and decay rates.
 solids settlement, gasification, upward diffusion, sludge accumulation.

The depth of aerobic layer in a facultative pond is a function of solar radiation, waste
characteristics, loading and temperature. As the organic loading is increased, oxygen
production by algae falls short of the oxygen requirement and the depth of aerobic layer
decreases. Further, there is a decrease in the photosynthetic activity of algae because of
greater turbidity and inhibitory effect of higher concentration of organic matter.

Gasification of organic matter to methane is carried out in distinct steps of acid production by
acid forming bacteria and acid utilization by methane bacteria. If the second step does not
proceed satisfactorily, there is an accumulation of organic acids resulting in decrease of pH
which would result in complete inhibition of methane bacteria. Two possible reasons for
imbalance between activities of methane bacteria are: (1) the waste may contain inhibitory
substances which would retard the activity of methane bacteria and not affect the activity of acid
producers to the same extent. (2) The activity of methane bacteria decreases much more
rapidly with fall in temperature as compared to the acid formers.

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Thus, year round warm temperature and sunshine provide an ideal environment for operation of
facultative ponds.

Algal Growth and Oxygen Production

Algal growth converts solar energy to chemical energy in the organic form. Empirical studies
have shown that generally about 6% of visible light energy can be converted to algal energy.

The chemical energy contained in an algal cell averages 6000 calories per gram of algae.

Depending on the sky clearance factor for an area, the average visible radiation received can be
estimated as follows:

Avg. radiation= Min. radiation + [(Max. radiation - Min. radiation)x sky clearance
factor]

Oxygen production occurs concurrently with algal production in accordance with following
equation:

106C02 + 16NO3 + HPO4 + 122H2O + 18H+ C106H263O110N16P1 + 138O2

On weight basis, the oxygen production is 1.3 times the algal production.

Areal Organic Loading

The permissible areal organic loading for the pond expressed as kg BOD/ha.d will depend on
the minimum incidence of sunlight that can be expected at a location and also on the
percentage of influent BOD that would have to be satisfied aerobically. The Bureau of Indian
Standards has related the permissible loading to the latitude of the pond location to aerobically
stabilize the organic matter and keep the pond odour free. The values are applicable to towns at
sea levels and where sky is clear for nearly 75% of the days in a year. The values may be
modified for elevations above sea level by dividing by a factor (1 + 0.003 EL) where EL is the
elevation of the pond site above MSL in hundred meters.

Detention Time

The flow of sewage can approximate either plug flow or complete mixing or dispersed flow. If
BOD exertion is described by first order reaction, the pond efficiency is given by:
for plug flow: Le/Li = e-k1t
for complete mixing: Le/Li = 1
1+k1t

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For dispersed flow the efficiency of treatment for different dgrees of intermixing is characterized
by dispersion numbers.Choice of a larger value for dispersion number or assumption of
complete mixing would give a conservative design and is recommended.

Depth

Having determined the surface area and detention capacity, it becomes necessary to consider
the depth of the pond only in regard to its limiting value. The optimum range of depth for
facultative ponds is 1.0 - 1.5 m.

Aquatic Plant Systems

Aquatic systems in waste treatment are either free floating growths harnessed in the form of
built-up ponds for waste treatment such as duckweed and hyacinth ponds or rooted
vegetations (reeds) which emerge out of shallow waters cultivated in constructed wetlands.

 Natural wetlands exists all over the world. They generally have saturated soil conditions
and abound in rooted vegetation which emerges out of shallow waters in the euphotic
zone. They may also have phytoplankton. Natural wetlands can be integrated with
wastewater treatment systems.
 Constructed wetlands are man-made for treatment of wastewater, mine drainage,
storm drainage, etc. They have rooted vegetation.

Longitudinal Section Through a Typical Reed Bed With Gravel, Sand or Selected Soil
With Horizontal Flow of Wastewater

 Aquatic plant ponds consisting of free floating macrophytes, such as water hyacinths,
duckweeds, etc. have been cultured in ponds either for their ability to remove heavy
metals, phenols, nutrients, etc. from wastewaters or to assist in giving further treatment
to pretreated wastewaters to meet stringent discharge standards while at the same time
producing new plant growths for their gas production or food value.

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Conceptual flowsheet showing waste treatment using an aquatic plant pond

LECTURE-30
Septic Tank

Septic tanks are horizontal continuous flow, small sedimentation tanks through which sewage is
allowed to flow slowly to enable the sewage solids to settle to the bottom of the tank, where they
are digested anaerobically. The tank is de-sludged at regular intervals usually once every 1-5
years.

Cesspool

It is a pit excavated in soil with water tight lining and loose lining by stone or brick to provide for
leaching of wastewater by sides and the pit is covered. The leaching type is suitable for porous
soils. The capacity should not be less than one day's flow into the pit. If all the water in a test pit
of one meter diameter and 2 m deep, disappears in 24 hours, such soil is best suitable for
cesspools. The bottom of the cesspool must be well above the ground water level. After
sometime the sides of pit get clogged by the sewage solids, reducing the leaching capacity. At
overflow level, an outlet is provided to take-off unleached liquid into a seepage pit. The settled
matter is removed at intervals. Water tight cesspools are cleaned every 6 months and their
capacity must not be less than 70 l/person/month.

Seepage Pit

The seepage pit is needed to discharge the effluent of cesspool, aquaprivy, septic tank or
sullage from bathrooms and kitchens. The difference between seepage pit and cesspool is that
the seepage pit is completely filled up with stones. The fine suspended solids adhere to the

86 UNDER REVISION
surface of stones and get decomposed by the zoogleal film, which are on the stones and the
effluent is leached into the sidewalls.

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 LECTURE-31

Module-IV

Air pollution

Unit of measurement

Concentrations of air pollutants are commonly expressed asthe mass of pollutant per Unit
volume of air mixture, as mg/m3, μg/m3, ng /m3

Concentration of gaseous pollutants may also be expressed as volume of pollutant per million
volumes of the air plus pollutant mixture (ppm) where 1ppm= 0.0001 % by volume. It is
sometimes necessary to convert from volumetric units to mass per unit volume and vice versa.

The relation ship between ppm and mg/m3 depends on the gas density, which in turn depends
on:™Temperature, Pressure, Molecular weight of the pollutant

The following expression can be uses to convert of between ppm and mg/m3 at any temperature
or pressure.

Simply multiply the calculated value of mg/m3 by 1000 to obtain μg/m3. The constant 22.4 is the
volume in liter occupied by 1 mole of an ideal gas at standard concentration (0c and 1 atm.).
One 14 mole of any substance is a quantity of that substance whose mass in grams numerically
equals its molecular weight

Sources and Classification of pollutants

Air pollution may be defined as any atmospheric condition in which certain substances are
present in such concentrations that they can produce undesirable effects on man and his
environment. These substances include gases (SOx, NOx, CO, HCs, etc) particulate matter
(smoke, dust, fumes, aerosols) radioactive materials and many others. Most of these
substances are naturally present in the atmosphere in low (background) concentrations and are
usually considered to be harmless. A particular substance can be considered as an air pollutant
only when its concentration is relatively high compared with the back ground value and causes
adverse effects.

Air pollution is a problem of obvious importance in most of the world that affects human, plant
and animal health. For example, there is good evidence that the health of 900 million urban
people suffers daily because of high levels of ambient air sulfur dioxide concentrations. Air
pollution is one of the 6 most serious environmental problems in societies at all level of

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economic development. Air pollution can also affect the properties of materials (such as rubber),
visibility, and the quality of life in general. Industrial development has been associated with
emission to air of large quantities of gaseous and particulate emissions from both industrial
production and from burning fossil fuels for energy and transportation.

When technology was introduced to control air pollution by reducing emissions of particles, it
was found that the gaseous emissions continued and caused problems of their own. Currently
efforts to control both particulate and gaseous emissions have been partially successful in much
of the developed world, but there is recent evidence that air pollution is a health risk even under
these relatively favorable conditions.

In societies that are rapidly developing sufficient resources may not be invested in air pollution
control because of other economic and social priorities. The rapid expansion of the industry in
these countries has occurred at the same time as increasing traffic from automobiles and trucks,
increasing demands for power for the home, and concentration of the population in large urban
areas called mega cities. The result has been some of the worst air pollution problem in the
world.

In many traditional societies, and societies where crude household energy sources are widely
available, air pollution is a serious problem because of inefficient and smoky fuels used to heat
buildings and cook. This causes air pollution both out door and indoors. The result can be lung
disease, eye problems, and increased risk of cancer.

The quality of air indoors is a problem also in many developed countries because buildings were
built to be airtight and energy efficient. Chemicals produced by heating and cooling systems,
smoking and evaporation from buildings materials accumulate indoors and create a pollution
problem.

The health effects of ambient air pollution have been difficult to document with certainty until
recent years. This is because of methodological problems in assessing exposure, other factors
that cause respiratory disease (such as cigarette smoking, respiratory tract infections, and
allergies), and the difficulty of studying such effects in large populations.

Recently, however, a series of highly sophisticated and convincing studies from virtually every
continent have demonstrated that air pollution has a major effect on human health. Respiratory
symptoms are the most common adverse health effects from air pollution of all types. Following
Table presents a summary of major health effects thought to be caused by community air
pollution. Respiratory effects of air pollution, particularly complicating chronic bronchitis, may
place an additional strain on the heart as well.

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Air pollution is associated with increased risk of death from heart disease and lung disease,
even at levels below those known to be acutely toxic to the heart. Mucosal irritation in the form
of acute or chronic bronchitis, nasal tickle, or conjunctivitis is characteristic of high levels of air
pollution, although individuals vary considerably in their susceptibility to such effects.

The eye irritation is particularly severe, in the setting of high levels of particulates (which need to
be in the respirable range described and may be quite large soot particles) or of high
concentrations of photochemical oxidants and especially aldehydes.

There is little evidence to suggest that community air pollution is a significant cause of cancer
except in unusual and extreme cases. However, emissions from particular sources may be
cancer-causing. Examples of cancer associated with community air pollution may include point-
source emissions from some smelters with poor controls that release arsenic, which can cause
lung cancer. Central nervous system effects, and possibly learning disabilities in children, may
result from accumulated body burdens of lead, where air pollution contributes a large fraction of
exposure because of lead additives in gasoline.

These health effects are better characterized for populations than for individual patients.
Establishing a relationship between the symptoms of a particular patient and exposure to air
pollution is more difficult than interpreting the likely health effects on an entire community. It is
important to understand that these pollutants are seasonal in their pattern. Both ozone and
sulfates, together with ultra fine particulates, tend to occur together during the summer months
in most developed areas. Ozone, oxides of nitrogen, aldehydes, and carbon monoxide tend to

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occur together in association with traffic, especially in sunny regions. Some pollutants, such as
radon, are only hazards indoors or in a confined area. Others are present both indoors and
outdoors, with varying relative concentrations.

Classifications of Air Pollutants

Air pollutants can be classified as

a. Criteria Pollutants

There are 6 principal, or “criteria” pollutants regulated by the US-EPA and most countries in the
world:

• Total suspended particulate matter (TSP), with additional subcategories of particles smaller
then 10 µm in diameter (PM10), and particles smaller than 2.5 µm in diameter (PM2.5). PM can
exist in solid or liquid form, and includes smoke, dust, aerosols, metallic oxides, and pollen.
Sources of PM include combustion, factories, construction, demolition, agricultural activities,
motor vehicles, and wood burning. Inhalation of enough PM over time increases the risk of
chronic respiratory disease.
• Sulfur dioxide (SO2). This compound is colorless, but has a suffocating, pungent odor. The
primary source of SO2 is the combustion of sulfur-containing fuels (e.g., oil and coal). Exposure
to SO2 can cause the irritation of lung tissues and can damage health and materials.

• Nitrogen oxides (NO and NO2). NO2 is a reddish-brown gas with a sharp odor. The primary
source of this gas is vehicle traffic, and it plays a role in the formation of tropospheric ozone.
Large concentrations can reduce visibility and increase the risk of acute and chronic respiratory
disease.

• Carbon monoxide (CO). This odorless, colorless gas is formed from the incomplete
combustion of fuels. Thus, the largest source of CO today is motor vehicles. Inhalation of CO
reduces the amount of oxygen in the bloodstream, and high concentrations can lead to
headaches, dizziness, unconsciousness, and death.

• Ozone (O3). Tropospheric (“low-level”) ozone is a secondary pollutant formed when sunlight
causes photochemical reactions involving NOX and VOCs. Automobiles are the largest source
of VOCs necessary for these reactions. Ozone concentrations tend to peak in the afternoon,
and can cause eye irritation, aggravation of respiratory diseases, and damage to plants and
animals.

• Lead (Pb). The largest source of Pb in the atmosphere has been from leaded gasoline
combustion, but with the gradual elimination worldwide of lead in gasoline, air Pb levels have
decreased considerably. Other airborne sources include combustion of solid waste, coal, and
oils, emissions from iron and steel production and lead smelters, and tobacco smoke. Exposure
to Pb can affect the blood, kidneys, and nervous, immune, cardiovascular, and reproductive
systems.

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b. Toxic Pollutants

Hazardous air pollutants (HAPS), also called toxic air pollutants or air toxics, are those
pollutants that cause or may cause cancer or other serious health effects, such as reproductive
effects or birth defects. The US-EPA is required to control 188 hazardous air pollutants

Examples of toxic air pollutants include benzene, which is found in gasoline; perchlorethlyene,
which is emitted from some dry cleaning facilities; and methylene chloride, which is used as a
solvent and paint stripper by a number of industries.
c. Radioactive Pollutants

Radioactivity is an air pollutant that is both geogenic and anthropogenic. Geogenic radioactivity
results from the presence of radionuclides, which originate either from radioactive minerals in
the earth‟s crust or from the interaction of cosmic radiation with atmospheric gases.
Anthropogenic radioactive emissions originate from nuclear reactors, the atomic energy industry
(mining and processing of reactor fuel), nuclear weapon explosions, and plants that reprocess
spent reactor fuel. Since coal contains small quantities of uranium and thorium, these
radioactive elements can be emitted into the atmosphere from coal-fired power plants and other
sources.
d. Indoor Pollutants

When a building is not properly ventilated, pollutants can accumulate and reach concentrations
greater than those typically found outside. This problem has received media attention as “Sick
Building Syndrome”. Environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) is one of the main contributors to
indoor pollution, as are CO, NO, and SO2, which can be emitted from furnaces and stoves.
Cleaning or remodeling a house is an activity that can contribute to elevated concentrations of
harmful chemicals such as VOCs emitted from household cleaners, paint, and varnishes. Also,
when bacteria die, they release endotoxins into the air, which can cause adverse health
effects31. So ventilation is important when cooking, cleaning, and disinfecting in a building. A
geogenic source of indoor air pollution is radon32.
Other classifications

Air pollutants come in the form of gases and finely divided solid and liquid aerosols.
Aerosols are loosely defined as “any solid or liquid particles suspended in the air” (1).

Air pollutants can also be of primary or secondary nature. Primary air pollutants are the ones
that are emitted directly into the atmosphere by the sources (such as power-generating plants).

Secondary air pollutants are the ones that are formed as a result of reactions between primary
pollutants and other elements in the atmosphere, such as ozone.

Types of pollutants

Sulfur Dioxide

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Sulfur dioxide was a serious problem in air pollution in the earliest days of industrialization. It
has been the major problem in reducing or acidifying air pollution during the period of rapid
economic growth in many countries. In 1953, Amdur et al. studied the effects of sulfur dioxide
on humans and found that, at least in acute exposures, concentrations of up to 8 ppm caused
respiratory changes that were dose dependent. (This is one of the first studies to use
physiological measurements as an indication of the effects of air pollution.) Later studies
revealed that the main effect of sulfur dioxide is broncho constriction (closing of the airways
causing increased resistance to breathing) which is dose dependent, rapid, and tended to peak
at 10 minutes (Folinsbee, 1992). Persons with asthma are particularly susceptible and in fact
asthmatics suffer more from the effects of sulfur dioxide than does the general public. Persons
with asthma who exercise will typically experience symptoms at 0.5 ppm, depending on the
individual.

Sulfate, the sulfur-containing ion present in water, remains a major constituent of air pollution
capable of forming acid. Sulfate itself appears to be capable of triggering broncho constriction in
persons with airways reactivity and it is a major constituent of ultrafine particulates. There are
other acid ingredients in air pollution, such as nitric acid, but less is know about them. These
acids, though, cause a phenomenon known as acid rain, with their emission into the air by
industry and motor vehicles.

Because of their small size and tendency to ride along on particulates, acid aerosols such as
sulfur dioxide, sulfates and nitrogen dioxide tend to deposit deeply in the distal lung and
airspace. They appear to provoke airways responses in an additive or synergistic manner with
ozone. They have also been implicated in causing mortality in association with ultra fine
particulates.

SO2 and sulfates are the principal chemical species that cause acid precipitation. They may be
transported long distances in the atmosphere away from their source and result in acidification
of water and soils.

Nitrogen Dioxide

Nitric oxide (NO) is produced by combustion. Nitrogen dioxide (NO2), which has greater health
effects, is a secondary pollutant created by the oxidation of NO under conditions of sunlight, or
may be formed directly by higher temperature combustion in power plants or indoors from gas
stoves. Levels of exposure to nitrogen dioxide that should not be exceeded (WHO guideline
levels) are respectively 400 μg/m3 (0.21 parts per million (ppm) for one hour and 150 μg/m3
(0.08 ppm) for 24 hours.

The direct effects of nitrogen oxide include increased infectious lower respiratory disease in
children (including longterm exposure as in houses with gas stoves) and increased asthmatic
problems. Extensive studies of the oxides of nitrogen have shown that they impair host
defenses in the respiratory tract, increasing the incidence and severity of bacterial infections

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after exposure. They have a marked effect in reducing the capacity of the lung to clear particles
and bacteria.

NO2 also provokes broncho-constriction and asthma in much the same way as ozone but it is
less potent than ozone in causing asthmatic effects. Despite decades of research, however, the
full effects of NO2 are not known. Known human health effects are summarized below:

LECTURE-32
Particulates matter

Particle matter in the air (aerosols) is associated with an elevated risk of mortality and morbidity
(including cough and bronchitis), especially among populations such as asthmatics and the
elderly. As indicated, they are released from fireplaces, wood and coal stoves, tobacco smoke,
diesel and automotive exhaust, and other sources of combustion. The US Environmental
protection Agency (EPA) sets a standard of 265 μg/m3 in ambient air, but does not have a
standard for indoor air levels. Usual concentrations range from 500 μg/m3 in bars and waiting
rooms to about 50 μg/m3 in homes. In developed countries, tobacco smoke is the primary
contributor to respirable particles indoors.

Particulate matter (PM 10)

Larger particulates, which are included in PM10 (particulates 10 μm and smaller) consist mostly
of carbon-containing material and are produced from combustion; some fraction of these are
produced by wind blowing soil into the air. These larger particulates do not seem to have as
much effect on human health as the smaller particulates.

Particulate matter (PM 2.5)

In recent years we have learned a great deal about the health effects of particles. As noted
above, particulates in urban air pollution that are extremely small, below 2.5 μm in diameter, are
different in their chemical composition than larger particles. Particulates in the fraction PM2.5

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(2.5 μm and below) contain a proportionately larger amount of water and acid forming chemicals
such as sulfate and nitrate, as well as trace metals. These smaller particulates penetrate easily
and completely into buildings and are relatively evenly dispersed throughout urban regions
where they are produced. Unlike other air contaminants that vary in concentration from place to
place within an area, PM2.5 tends to be rather uniformly distributed.

PM2.5 sulfate and ozone cannot be easily separated because they tend to occur together in
urban air pollution. Recent research strongly suggests that at least PM2.5 and sulfate, and
probably ozone as well, cause an increase in deaths in affected cities. The higher the air
pollution levels for these specific contaminants, the more excess deaths seem to occur on any
given day, above the levels that would be expected for the weather and the time of year.
Likewise, accounting for the time of the year and the weather, there are more hospital
admissions for various conditions when these contaminants are high. Ozone, particularly, is
linked with episodes of asthma, but all three seem to be associated with higher rates of deaths
from and complaints about lung disease and heart disease. It is not yet known which is the
predominant factor in the cause of these health effects, and some combination of each may be
responsible for some effects. Although the effect of air pollution is clearly present in the
statistics, air pollution at levels common in developed countries is probably much less of a factor
in deaths and hospital admissions than the weather, cigarette smoking, allergies, and viral
infections. However, the populations exposed to air pollution are very large, and even if only 5%
of all excess deaths during a one-week period are related to air pollution in a major city, a
reasonable estimate, this means that thousands of deaths could be prevented. One unexpected
finding of this research is that the effect of particulate air pollution on deaths and hospital
admissions is continuous from high levels to low levels of exposure. In other words, there is no
obvious level below which the public is clearly protected, and even at low levels of air pollution,
some excess deaths still seem to occur. At first, it was thought that these deaths represented
sick people who would soon die anyway. If this were true, one would expect there to be fewer
deaths than expected when air pollution levels returned to normal or below normal, but a careful
study of the death rate during and just after periods of high air pollution levels does not seem to
show this. At the much greater levels encountered in many developing countries, the effect is
likely to be proportionately greater. There are many factors at work that complicate such studies
in developing countries. The very high rates of respiratory disease during the winter among
even non smokers in some northern Chinese cities, for example, has been attributed to air
pollution and this is likely to be true, however, cigarette smoking, indoor air pollution from coal-
fired stoves, crowded conditions and the risk of viral infections may also be important factors.

There remains much more work to do to understand this problem, but the essential message
seems clear: at any level, particulate air pollution and possibly ozone are associated with
deaths, and both are clearly associated with hospital admissions and health risks.

Hydrocarbons

Most hydrocarbons such as aliphatic and salicylic hydrocarbons are generally biochemical inert
at ambient levels and thus present little hazards. Aromatic hydrocarbon such, on the other hand

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are biochemical and biologically active are more irritating to mucous membranes compounds
like benzo(a) Pyrene are known to be potent carcinogens. HCs are included among the criteria
air pollutants, chiefly because of their role as catalysts in the formation of photochemical smog.

Lead

Lead is the best studied of these trace metals. It is known to be a highly toxic substance that
particularly causes nerve damage. In children, this can result in learning disabilities and
neurobehavioral problems. An estimated 80 – 90% of lead in ambient air is thought to be
derived from the combustion of leaded petrol. Due to its effects on the behavior and learning
abilities of children even at low levels of exposure, efforts throughout the world are directed at
removing lead from gasoline. The WHO guidelines value for long-term exposure to lead in the
air is 0.5 –1.0 μg/m3 /year).

Influence of meteorological phenomena on air quality

Meteorology specifies what happen to puff or plume of pollutants from the time it is emitted to
the time it is detected at some other location. The motion of the air causes a dilution of air
pollutant concentration and we would like to calculate how much dilution occurs as a function of
the meteorology or atmospheric condition.

Air pollutants emitted from anthropogenic sources must first be transported and diluted in the
atmosphere before these under go various physical and photochemical transformation and
ultimately reach their receptors. Otherwise, the pollutant concentrations reach dangerous level
near the source of emission. Hence, it is important that we understand the natural processes
that are responsible for their dispersion. The degree of stability of the atmosphere in turn
depends on the rate of change of ambient temperature with altitude.

LECTURE-33
VERTICAL DISPERSION OF POLLUTANTS

As a parcel of air in the atmosphere rises, it experiences decreasing pressure and thus
expands. This expansion lowers the temperature of the air parcel, and therefore the air cools as
it rises. The rate at which dry air cools as it rises is called the dry adiabatic lapse rate and is
independent of the ambient air temperature. The term adiabatic means that there is no heat
exchange between the rising parcel of air under consideration and the surrounding air. The dry
adiabatic lapse rate can be calculated from the first law of thermodynamics (1°C per 100m). As
the air parcel expands, it does work on the surroundings. Since the process is usually rapid,
there is no heat transfer between the air parcel and the surrounding air.

Saturated adiabatic lapse rate, (Γs)

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Unlike the dry adiabatic lapse rate, saturated adiabatic lapse rate is not a constant, since the
amount of moisture that the air can hold before condensation begins is a function of
temperature. A reasonable average value of the moist adiabatic lapse rate in the troposphere is
about 6°C/Km.

Example
An air craft flying at an altitude of 9 km draws in fresh air at - 40°C for cabin ventilation. If that
fresh air is compressed to the pressure at sea level, would the air need to be heated or cooled if
it is to be delivered to the cabin at 20°C.

Solution
As the air is compressed, it warms up it is even easier for the air to hold whatever moisture it
may have, had .so there is no condensation to worry about and the dry adiabatic lapse rate can
be used, At 10°C per km, compression will raise the air temperature by

10x9=90°C making it -40+90°c=50°C

It needs to be the air conditioned The air in motion is called wind, air which is rushing from an
area of high pressure towards an area of low pressure. When the weather-man reports the wind
to us he uses a measuring system worked out in 1805 by Adoniral Beaufort. For example, a
“moderate breeze” is a wind of 13 to 18 miles an hour. Obviously air quality at a given site
varies tremendously from day to day, even though the emissions remain relatively constant. The
determining factors have to do the weather: how strong the winds are, what direction they are
blowing , the temperature profile , how much sun light available to power photochemical
reactions, and how long it has been since the last strong winds or precipitation were able to
clear the air. Air quality is dependent on the dynamics of the atmosphere, the study of which is
called meteorology

Temperature lapse rate and stability

The ease with which pollutants can disperse vertically into the atmosphere is largely determined
by the rate of change of air temperature with altitude. For some temperature profiles the air is
stable, that is, air at a given altitude has physical forces acting on it that make it want to remain
at that elevation. Stable air discourages the dispersion and dilution of pollutants. For other
temperature profiles, the air is unstable. In this case rapid vertical mixing takes place that
encourages pollutant dispersal and increase air quality. Obviously, vertical stability of the
atmosphere is an important factor that helps determine the ability of the atmosphere to dilute
emissions; hence, it is crucial to air quality. Let us investigate the relationship between
atmospheric stability and temperature. It is useful to imagine a “parcel” of air being made up of a
number of air molecules with an imaginary boundary around them. If this parcel of air moves
upward in the atmosphere, it will experience less pressure, causing it to expand and cool. On
the other hand, if it moves dawn ward, more pressure will compress the air and its temperature
will increase. As a starting point, we need a relationship that expires an air parcel‟s change of
temperature as it moves up or down in the atmosphere. As it moves, we can imagine its

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temperature, pressure and volume changing, and we might imagine its surrounding adding or
subtracting energy from the parcel. If we make small changes in these quantities, and apply
both the ideal gas law and the first law of thermodynamics, it is relatively straightforward to drive
the following expression.

Let us make the quite accurate assumption that as the parcel moves, there is no heat
transferred across its boundary, that is, that this process is adiabatic

The above equation gives us an indication of how atmosperic temperature would change with
air pressure, but what are really interested in is how it changes with altitude .To do that we need
to know how pressure and altitude are related. Consider a static column of air with a cross
section A, as shown in figure.A horizontal slice of air in that column of thickness dZ and density
ρ will have mass ρAdZ. If the pressure at the top of the slice due to the weight of air above it is
P(Z+dZ), then the pressure at the bottom of the slice ,P(Z) will be P(z+dz)plus the added weight
per unit area of the slice it self:

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The negative sign indicates that temperature decreases with increasing altitude. Substituting the
constant g =9.806m/s2, and the constant –volume specific heat of dry air at room temperature,
Cp 1005J/kg. 0C in (2
.6) yields

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 LECTURE-34
ATMOSPHERIC STABILITY

The ability of the atmosphere to disperse the pollutants emitted in to it depends to a large extent
on the degree of stability. A comparison of the adiabatic lapse rate with the environmental lapse
rate gives an idea of stability of the atmosphere. When the environmental lapse rate and the dry
adiabatic lapse rate are exactly the same, a raising parcel of air will have the same pressure
and temperature and the density of the surroundings and would experience no buoyant force.
Such atmosphere is said to be neutrally stable where a displaced mass of air neither tends to
return to its original position nor tends to continue its displacement

When the environmental lapse rate (-dT/dz.)Env is greater than the dry adiabatic lapse rate,Γ
the atmosphere is said to be super adiabatic. Hence a raising parcel of air, cooling at the
adiabatic rate, will be warmer and less dense than the surrounding environment. As a result, it
becomes more buoyant and tends to continue it‟s up ward motion. Since vertical motion is
enhanced by buoyancy, such an atmosphere is called unstable. In the unstable atmosphere the
air from different altitudes mixes thoroughly. This is very desirable from the point of view of
preventing pollution, since the effluents will be rapidly dispersed through out atmosphere. On
the other hand, when the environmental lapse rate is less than the dry adiabatic lapse rate, a
rising air parcel becomes cooler and denser than its surroundings and tends to fall back to its
original position. Such an atmospheric condition is called stable and the lapse rate is said to be
sub adiabatic. Under stable condition their is very little vertical mixing and pollutants can only
disperse very slowly. As result, their levels can build up very rapidly in the environment. When
the ambient lapse rate and the dry adiabatic lapse rate are exactly the same, the atmosphere
has neutral stability. Super adiabatic condition prevails when the air temperature drops more
than 1°C /100m; sub adiabatic condition prevail when the air temperature drops at the rate less
than 1°c/100m

Inversion

Atmospheric inversion influences the dispersion of pollutantsby restricting vertical mixing. There
are several ways by which inversion layers can be formed .One of the most common types is

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the elevated subsidence inversion, This is usually associated with the sub tropical anti cyclone
where the air is warmed by compression as it descends in a high pressure system and achieves
temperature higher than that of the air under neath. If the temperature increase is sufficient, an
inversion will result
• It lasts for months on end
• Occur at higher elevation
• More common in summer than winter

The subsidence is caused by air flowing down to replace air, which has flowed out of the high-
pressure region

Radiation Inversion

The surface of the earth cools down at night by radiating energy toward space. On cloudy night,
the earth‟s radiation tends to be absorbed by water vapor, which in turn reradiates some of that
energy back to the ground. On the clear night, however, the surface more readily radiate energy
to space, and thus ground cooling occurs much more rapidly. As the ground cools, the
temperature of the air in contact with the ground also drops. As is often the case on clear winter
nights, the temperature of this air just above the ground becomes colder than the air above it,
creating an inversion. Radiation inversions begins to form at dusk .As the evening progresses,
the inversion extends to a higher and higher elevation, reaching perhaps a few hundred meters
before the morning sun warms the ground again, breaking up the inversion.

Radiation inversion occurs close to the ground, mostly during the winter, and last for only a
matter of hours. They often begin at about the time traffic builds up in the early evening, which
traps auto exhaust at ground level and causes elevated concentration of pollution for
commuters. With out sunlight, photochemical reactions can not takes place, so the biggest
problem is usually accumulation of carbon monoxide (CO). In the morning, as the sun warms
the ground and the inversion begins to the break up, pollutants that have been trapped in the
stable air mass are suddenly brought back to earth in a process known as fumigation.
Fumigation can cause short lived high concentrations of pollution at ground level.

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Radiation inversions are important in another context besides air pollution. Fruit growers in
places like California have long known that their crops are in greatest danger of frost damage on
winter nights when the skies are clear and a radiation inversion sets in. Since the air even a few
meters up is warmer than the air at crop level, one way to help protect sensitive crops on such
nights is simply to mix the air with large motor driven fans.

The third type of inversion, know as advective inversion is formed when warm air moves over a
cold surface or cold air. The inversion can be a ground based in the former case, or elevated in
the latter case. An example of an elevated advective inversion occurs when a hill range forces a
warm land breeze to follow at high levels and cool sea breathes flows at low level in the
opposite direction.

TOPOGRAPHICAL EFFECTS

In large bodies of water the thermal inertia of the water causes a slower temperature change
than the near by land. For example, along an ocean coastline and during periods of high solar
input, the daytime air temperature over the ocean is lower than over the land. The relative warm
air over the land rises and replaced by cooler ocean air. The system is usually limited to
altitudes of several hundred meters, which of course, is where pollutants are emitted. The
breeze develops during the day and strongest in mid after noon. At night the opposite may
occur, although, usually not with such large velocities. At night the ocean is relatively warm and
the breeze is from the cooler land the warmer ocean. The on shore breeze is most likely in the
summer months, while the off-shore land breeze more likely occur in winter months. A second
common wind system caused by topographical effect is the mountain - valley wind. In this case
the air tends to flow down the valley at night Valleys are cooler at higher elevation and the
driving force for the airflow result from the differential cooling. Similarly, cool air drains off the
mountain at night and flows in to the valley. During the day light hours an opposite flow may

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occur as the heated air adjacent to the sun warmed ground begins to rise and flow both up the
valley and up the mountain slopes. However, thermal turbulence may mask the daytime up-
slope flow so that it is not as strong as the nighttime down - slope flow. Both the sea breeze and
the mountain valley wind are important in meteorology of air pollution. Large power stations are
often located on ocean costs or adjacent to large lakes. In this case the stack effluent will tend
to drift over the land during the day and may be subjected to fumigation.

Wind velocity and turbulence

The wind velocity profile is influenced by the surface roughness and time of the day. During the
day, solar heating causes thermal turbulence or eddies set up convective currents so that
turbulent mixing is increased. This results in a more flat velocity profile in the day than that at
night. The second type of turbulence is the mechanical turbulence, which is produced by
shearing stress generated by air movement over the earth‟s surface. The greater the surface
roughness, the greater the turbulence. The mean wind speed variation with altitude is the
planetary boundary layer can be represented by a simple empirical power.

In practice, because of the appreciable change in wind speed with altitude, a wind speed value
must be quoted with respect to the elevation at which it is measured. This reference height for
surface wind measurement is usually 10 meters

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Atmospheric turbulence is characterized by different sizes of eddies. These eddies are primarily
responsible for diluting and transporting the pollutants injected in to the atmosphere. If the size
of the eddies is larger then the size of the plume or a puff then the plume or the puff will be
transported down wind by the eddy with little dilution. Molecular diffusion will ultimately dissipate
the plume or the puff. If the eddy is smaller than the plume or the puff, the plume or the puff will
be disperse uniformly as the eddy entrains fresh air at its boundary.

LECTURE-35
Plume behavior

The behavior of a plume emitted from an elevated source such as a tall stack depends on the
degree of instability of the atmosphere and the prevailing wind turbulence.

Classification of plume behavior

1. Looping: it occurs under super adiabatic conditions with light to moderate wind speeds on a
hot summer after noon when large scale thermal eddies are present. The eddies carry portion of
a plume to the ground level for short time periods, causing momentary high surface
concentration of pollutants near the stack. Thus the plume moves about vertically in a spastic
fashion and the exhaust gases disperse rapidly

2. Conning: It occurs under cloudy skies both during day and night, when the lapse rate is
essentially neutral. The plume shape is vertically symmetrical about the plume line and the
major part of the pollutant concentration is carried down -wind fairly far before reaching the
ground level.

3. Fanning: occurs when the plume is dispersed in the presence of very light winds as a result
of strong atmospheric inversions. The stable lapse rate suppresses the vertical mixing, but not
the horizontal mixing entirely. For high stacks, fanning is considered a favourable
meteorological condition because the plume does not contribute to ground pollution.

4. Fumigation: here a stable layer of air lies a short distance above the release point of the
plume and the unstable air layer lies below the plume .This unstable layer of air causes the
pollutant to mix down -wind toward the ground in large lumps, but fortunately this condition is
usually of short duration lasting for about 30 minutes Fumigation is favored by clear skies and
light winds, and it is more common in the summer seasons.

5. Lofting : The condition for lofting plume are the inverse of those for fumigation , when the
pollutants are emitted above the inverse layer , they are dispersed vigorously on the up ward
direction since the top of the inversion layer acts as a barrier to the movement of the pollutants
towards the ground .

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6. Trapping: occurs when the plume effluent is caught between two inversion layers. The
diffusion of the effluent is severely restricted to the unstable layer between the two unstable
layers.

PLUME DISPERSION

Dispersion is the process by which contaminants move through the air and a plume spreads
over a large area, thus reducing the concentration of pollutants it contains. The plume spreads
both horizontally and vertically. If it is gaseous, the motion of the molecules follows the low of
gaseous diffusion The most commonly used model for the dispersion of gaseous air pollutants
is the Gaussian, developed by Pasquill, in which gases dispersed in the atmosphere are
assumed to exhibit idea gas behavior

The Gaussian plume model

The present tendency is to interpret dispersion data in terms of the Gaussian model. The
standard deviations are related to the eddy diffusivities

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 ⎦⎥
Estimation of δyandδz
The values of δyandδz have been shown to be related to the diffusion coefficient in the y and z
directions .As might be expected, δy and δz are functions of down wind distance x from the
source as well as the atmospheric stability conditions. Based on the experimental observation of
the dispersion of plumes, pasquill and Gifford have devised a method for calculating, δy and δz
of the spreading plume from knowledge of the atmospheric stability. Six categories of the
atmospheric stability; A through F, were suggested and these are shown in the table 2.1 as a
function of wind and solar radiation

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 LECTURE-36
Plume rise

Generally, effluent plumes from the chimney stacks are released in to the atmosphere at
elevated temperatures. The rise of the plume after release to the atmosphere is caused by
buoyancy and the vertical momentum of the effluent. Under windless conditions, the plume rises
vertically but more often it is bent as a result of the wind that is usually present. This rises of the
plume adds to the stack an additional height ΔH, such that the height H of the virtual origin is
obtained by adding the term ΔH, the plume rise, the actual height of the stack, Hs. The plume
center line height H = Hs +ΔH is known as the effective stack height and it is this height that is
used in the Gaussian plume calculations.

Plume rise

Estimation of plume rise

1. Buoyant plumes
In the case of buoyant plumes, the influence of buoyancy is much greater than the influence of
vertical momentum. Such plumes are usually obtained when the release temperatures are more
than 50 c greater than ambient atmospheric temperatures.

2. Plume rise under stable and calm conditions

When there is little or no wind, the bending of the plume is negligible small and it rises to some
height where the buoyancy force is completely dissipated. The recommended equation for such
a situation is

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 .

3. Non- buoyant plumes

For sources at temperature close to the ambient or less than 50 ° C above ambient and having
exit speed of at least 10m/sec, the following equation can be used

LECTURE-37
AIR POLLUTION CONTROL

Pollution control equipment can reduce emissions by cleaning exhaust and dirty air before it
leaves the business. A wide variety of equipment can be used to clean dirty air. DNR engineers
carefully study and review how these controls may work and the methods and requirements are
put into a permit - a major duty performed by the DNR.

Process Controls

There are other ways to reduce emissions besides using pollution control equipment--prevent
emissions to begin with. Air quality permits help minimize, reduce or prevent emissions as much
as possible by placing requirements on how things are done.

Permits can specify the quantity, type, or quality of fuel or other substance used in a process.
For example, a permit might specify the maximum percent of sulfur that can exist in the coal to

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reduce sulfur dioxide emissions. A permit may specify the quantity of volatile chemicals in paint,
solvent, adhesive or other product used in large quantity during manufacturing. Permits can also
help reduce the impact of emitted pollutants on local air by specifying smokestack height and
other factors.

Engineers can also set combustion specifications to minimize emissions. For example, to help
reduce nitrogen oxide formation, the combustion conditions in the furnace can be altered. The
flame temperature can be lowered or raised, the amount of time air remains in the combustion
chamber can be altered, or the mixing rate of fuel and air can be changed. These options are
often reviewed, studied and best choices made depending upon cost, plant design and many
other variables.

GRAVITY SETTLING CHAMBERS

This is a simple particulate collection device using the principle of gravity to settle the
particulate matter in a gas stream passing through its long chamber. The primary requirement of
such a device would be a chamber in which the carrier gas velocity is reduced so as to allow the
particulate matter to settle out of the moving gas stream under the action of gravity. This
particulate matter is then collected at the bottom of the chamber. The chamber is cleaned
manually to dispose the waste.

The gas velocities in the settling chamber must be sufficiently low for the particles to settle
due to gravitational force. Literature indicates that gas velocity less than about 3 m/s is needed
to prevent re-entrainment of the settled particles. The gas velocity of less than 0.5 m/s will
produce good results.

Curtains, rods, baffles and wire mesh screens may be suspended in the chamber to minimize
turbulence and to ensure uniform flow. The pressure drop through the chamber is usually low
and is due to the entrance and exit losses.

The velocity of the particles in the settling chamber can be obtained by Stokes‟ law as
follows:

Vs = (g(rp –r ) D2 ) /18 µ

Where,

D = Diameter of the particle.

g = acceleration due to gravity
rp = density of the particle
r = density of the gas
µ = viscosity of the gas

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The advantages of settling chambers are:

i) low initial cost,

ii) simple construction,
iii) low maintenance cost,
iv) low pressure drop,
v) dry and continuous disposal of solid particles,
vi) use of any material for construction, and
vii) temperature and pressure limitations will only depend on the nature of the construction
material.

The disadvantages of this device are

i) large space requirements and

ii) only comparatively large particles (greater than 10 micron) can be collected.

Because of the above advantages and disadvantages, settling chambers are mostly used as
pre-cleaners. They are sometimes used in the process industries, particularly in the food and
metallurgical industries as the first step in dust control. Use of settling chambers as pre-cleaners
can also reduce the maintenance cost of high efficiency control equipment, which is more
subject to abrasive deterioration.

CYCLONES:

Settling chambers discussed above are not effective in removing small particles. Therefore,
one needs a device that can exert more force than gravity force on the particles so that they can
be removed from the gas stream. Cyclones use centrifugal forces for removing the fine
particles. They are also known as centrifugal or inertial separators.

The cyclone consists of a vertically placed cylinder which has an inverted cone attached to its
base. The particulate laden gas stream enters tangentially at the inlet point to the cylinder. The
velocity of this inlet gas stream is then transformed into a confined vortex, from which centrifugal
forces tend to drive the suspended particles to the walls of the cyclone. The vortex turns upward
after reaching at the bottom of the cylinder in a narrower inner spiral. The clean gas is removed
from a central cylindrical opening at the top, while the dust particles are collected at the bottom
in a storage hopper by gravity.

The efficiency of a cyclone chiefly depends upon the cyclone diameter. For a given pressure
drop, smaller the diameter, greater is the efficiency, because centrifugal action increases with
decreasing radius of rotation. Centrifugal forces employed in modern designs vary from 5 to
2500 times gravity depending on the diameter of the cyclone. Cyclone efficiencies are greater
than 90% for the particles with the diameter of the order of 10 µ. For particles with diameter
higher than 20 µ, efficiency is about 95%.

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The efficiency of a cyclone can be increased by the use of cyclones either in parallel or in
series. A brief explanation of both arrangements is given below:

Multiple Cyclones:
A battery of smaller cyclones, operating in parallel, designed for a constant pressure
drop in each chamber. The arrangement is compact, with convenient inlet and outlet
arrangements. They can treat a large gas flow, capturing smaller particles.

Cyclones in series:
Two cyclones are used in series. The second cyclone removes the particles that were
not collected in the first cyclone, because of the statistical distribution across the inlet, or
accidental re-entrainment due to eddy currents and re-entrainment in the vortex core, thus
increasing the efficiency.

The advantages of cyclones are:

i) low initial cost,

ii) simple in construction and operation,
iii) low pressure drop,
iv) low maintenance requirements,
v) continuous disposal of solid particulate matter, and
vi) use of any material in their construction that can withstand the temperature and pressure
requirements.

The disadvantages of cyclones include:

i) low collection efficiency for particles below 5 – 10 µ in diameter,

ii) severe abrasion problems can occur during the striking of particles on the walls of the
cyclone, and
iii) a decrease in efficiency at low particulate concentration.

Typical applications of cyclones are:

i) For the control of gas borne particulate matter in industrial operations such as cement
manufacture, food and beverage, mineral processing and textile industries.
ii) To separate dust in the disintegration operations, such as rock crushing, ore handling and
sand conditioning in industries.
iii) To recover catalyst dusts in the petroleum industry.
iv) To reduce the fly ash emissions.

The operating problems are:

i) Erosion: Heavy, hard, sharp edged particles, in a high concentration, moving at a high velocity
in the cyclone, continuously scrape against the wall and can erode the metallic surface.
ii) Corrosion: If the cyclone is operating below the condensation point, and if reactive gases are
present in the gas stream, then corrosion problems can occur. Thus the product should be kept

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above the dew point or a stainless steel alloy should be used.
iii) Build – up: A dust cake builds up on the cyclone walls, especially around the vortex finder, at
the ends of any internal vanes, and especially if the dust is hygroscopic. It can be a severe
problem.

LECTURE-38
ELECTROSTATIC PRECIPITATORS :
Electrostatic precipitators (ESP) are particulate collection devices that use electrostatic force to
remove the particles less than 5 micron in diameter. It is difficult to use gravity settlers and
cyclones effectively for the said range of particles. Particles as small as one-tenth of a
micrometer can be removed with almost 100% efficiency using electrostatic precipitators.

The principle behind all electrostatic precipitators is to give electrostatic charge to particles in a
given gas stream and then pass the particles through an electrostatic field that drives them to a
collecting electrode.

The electrostatic precipitators require maintenance of a high potential difference between the
two electrodes, one is a discharging electrode and the other is a collecting electrode. Because
of the high potential difference between the two electrodes, a powerful ionizing field is formed.
Very high potentials – as high as 100 kV are used. The usual range is 40- 60 kV. The
ionization creates an active glow zone (blue electric discharge) called the „corona‟ or „corona
glow‟. Gas ionization is the dissociation of gas molecules into free ions.

As the particulate in the gas pass through the field, they get charged and migrate to the
oppositely charged collecting electrode, lose their charge and are removed mechanically by
rapping, vibration, or washing to a hopper below.

In summary, the step by step process of removing particles using ESPs is:

i) Ionizing the gas.

ii) Charging the gas particles.
iii) Transporting the particles to the collecting surface.
iv) Neutralizing, or removing the charge from the dust particles.
v) Removing the dust from the collecting surface.

The major components of electrostatic precipitators are:

i) A source of high voltage

ii) Discharge and collecting electrodes.
iii) Inlet and outlet for the gas.
iv) A hopper for the disposal of the collected material.
v) An outer casing to form an enclosure around the electrodes.

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The ESP is made of a rectangular or cylindrical casing. All casings provide an inlet and outlet
connection for the gases, hoppers to collect the precipitated particulate and the necessary
discharge electrodes and collecting surfaces. There is a weatherproof, gas tight enclosure over
the precipitator that houses the high voltage insulators.

Electrostatic precipitators also usually have a number of auxiliary components, which include
access doors, dampers, safety devices and gas distribution systems. The doors can be closed
and bolted under normal conditions and can be opened when necessary for inspection and
maintenance. Dampers are provided to control the quantity of gas. It may either be a guillotine,
a louver or some such other device that opens and closes to adjust gas flow.

The safety grounding system is extremely important and must always be in place during
operation and especially during inspection. This commonly consists of a conductor, one end of
which is grounded to the casing, and the other end is attached to the high voltage system by an
insulated operating lever.

The precipitator hopper is an integral part of the precipitator shell and is made of the same
material as the shell. Since ESPs require a very high voltage direct current source of energy for
operation, transformers are required to step up normal service voltages to high voltages.
Rectifiers convert the alternating current to unidirectional current.

Types of electrostatic precipitators:

There are many types of ESPs in use throughout the world. A brief description of three different
types is given below:

A) Single stage or two stage:

In a single stage ESP, gas ionization and particulate collection are combined in a single step.
An example is the “Cottrell” single-stage precipitator. Because it operates at ionizing voltages
from 40,000 to 70,000 volts, DC, it may also be called a high voltage precipitator. It is used
extensively for heavy duty applications such as utility boilers, large industrial boilers and cement
kilns.

In the two-stage precipitator particles are ionized in the first chamber and collected in the
second chamber. For example, “Penny”– the two stage precipitator uses DC voltages from
11,000 to 14,000 volts for ionization and is referred to as a low voltage precipitator. Its use is
limited to low inlet concentration, normally not exceeding 0.025 grains per cubic feet. It is the
most practical collection technique for many hydrocarbon applications, where the initial clear
exhaust stack turns into a visible emission as vapor condenses.

B) Pipe type or Plate type:

In the pipe type electrostatic precipitators, a nest of parallel pipes form the collecting electrodes,
which may be round, or square. Generally the pipe is about 30 cm in diameter or less. Most
commonly a wire with a small radius of curvature, suspended along the axis of each pipe, is

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used. The wires must be weighted or supported to retain proper physical tension and location,
electrically insulated from the support grid and strong enough to withstand rapping or vibration
for cleaning purpose. The gas flow is axial from bottom to top.

The pipe electrodes, may be 2-5 m high. Spacing between the discharge electrode and
collecting electrode ranges from 8-20 cm. Precipitation of the aerosol particles occurs on the
inner pipe walls, from which the material can be periodically removed by rapping of pipes or by
flushing water. The pipe type precipitator is generally used for the removal of liquid particles.

In the plate type precipitators the collection electrodes consist of parallel plates. The discharge
electrodes are again wires with a small curvature. Sometimes square or twisted rods can be
used. The wires are suspended midway between the parallel plates and usually hang free with a
weight suspended at the bottom to keep them straight. Discharge electrodes are made from
non-corrosive materials like tungsten, and alloys of steel and copper. The gas flow is parallel to
the plates.

The plates may be 1-2 m wide and 3-6 m high. The parallel plates should be at equally spaced
intervals (between 15 and 35 cm). The collection of the aerosols takes place on the inner side
of the parallel plates. The dust material can be removed by rapping either continuously or
periodically. The dust particles removed fall into the hopper at the base of the precipitator.

Collection electrodes should have a minimum amount of collection surface, bulking resistance,
resistance to corrosion and a consistent economic design.

Plate type precipitators are horizontal or vertical, depending on the direction of the gas flow.
Gas velocities are maintained at 0.5-0.6 m/s in these precipitators. They‟re used for collection of
solid particulate.

C) Dry and Wet Precipitators:

If particulate matter is removed from the collecting electrodes, by rapping only, it is known as a
dry precipitator. If, on the other hand, water or any other fluid is used for removal of the solid
particulate matter, then it is known as a wet precipitator. In general, wet precipitators are more
efficient. However, it is the dry type plate precipitators that are predominantly used.

Efficiency:

Generally, the collection efficiency of the electrostatic precipitator is very high, approaching
100%. Many installations operate at 98 and 99% efficiency. Some materials ionize more readily
than others and are thus more adapted to removal by electrostatic precipitation.

Acid mists and catalyst recovery units have efficiencies in excess of 99%. However, for
materials like carbon black, which have very low efficiencies due to very low collection capacity,
by proper combination of an ESP with a cyclone, very high efficiencies can be achieved. The
gas entering the ESP may be pre-treated (i.e., removing a portion of particulate) by using

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certain mechanical collectors or by adding certain chemicals to the gas to change the chemical
properties of the gas to increase their capacity to collect on the discharge electrode and thus
increase the efficiency.

The factors affecting the efficiency of electrostatic precipitators are particle resistivity and
particle re-entrainment. Both are explained below:

A) Particle Resistivity :

Dust resistivity is a measure of the resistance of the dust layer to the passage of a current. For
practical operation, the resistivity should be 107 and 1011 ohm-cm. At higher resistivities,
particles are too difficult to charge. Higher resistivity leads to a decrease in removal efficiency.
At times, particles of high resistivity may be conditioned with moisture to bring them into an
acceptable range.

If the resistivity of the particles is too low,(<10 ohm–cm), little can be done to improve
efficiency. This is due to the fact that the particles accept a charge easily, but they dissipate it
so quickly at the collector electrode, that the particles are re- entrained in the gas stream. This
results in low efficiency.

Particle resistivity depends upon the composition of the dust and the continuity of the dust layer.
Resistivity is also affected by the ESP operating temperature and by the voltage gradient that
exists across the dust layer.

B) Particle re-entrainment:

This is a problem associated with particle charging. It occurs primarily in two situations – due to
either inadequate precipitator area, or inadequate dust removal from the hopper. Re-
entrainment reduces the precipitator performance, because of the necessity of recollecting the
dust that had been previously removed from the carrier gas. The problem can be overcome by a
proper design of the ESP and necessary maintenance.

The advantages of using the ESP are:

i) High collection efficiency.

ii) Particles as small as 0.1 micron can be removed.
iii) Low maintenance and operating cost.
iv) Low pressure drop (0.25-1.25 cm of water).
v) Satisfactory handling of a large volume of high temperature gas.
vi) Treatment time is negligible (0.1-10s).
vii) Cleaning is easy by removing the units of precipitator from operation.
viii) There is no limit to solid, liquid or corrosive chemical usage.

The disadvantages of using the ESP are:

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i) High initial cost.
ii) Space requirement is more because of the large size of the equipment.
iii) Possible explosion hazards during collection of combustible gases or particulate.
iv) Precautions are necessary to maintain safety during operation. Proper gas flow distribution,
particulate conductivity and corona spark over rate must be carefully maintained.
v) The negatively charged electrodes during gas ionization produce the ozone.

The important applications of ESPs in different industries throughout the world are given as
below:

i) Cement factories:
a) Cleaning the flue gas from the cement kiln.
b) Recovery of cement dust from kilns.

ii) Pulp and paper mills:

a) Soda-fume recovery in the Kraft pulp mills.

iii) Steel Plants:

a) Cleaning blast furnace gas to use it as a fuel.
b) Removing tars from coke oven gases.
c) Cleaning open hearth and electric furnace gases.

iv) Non-ferrous metals industry:

a) Recovering valuable material from the flue gases.
b) Collecting acid mist.

v) Chemical Industry:
a) Collection of sulfuric and phosphoric acid mist.
b) Cleaning various types of gas, such as hydrogen, CO2, and SO2.
c) Removing the dust from elemental phosphorous in the vapor state.

vi) Petroleum Industry:

a) Recovery of catalytic dust.

vii) Carbon Black industry:

a) Agglomeration and collection of carbon black.

viii) Electric Power Industry:

a) Collecting fly ash form coal-fired boilers.

SCRUBBERS:

Scrubbers are devices that remove particulate matter by contacting the dirty gas stream with
liquid drops. Generally water is used as the scrubbing fluid. In a wet collector, the dust is
agglomerated with water and then separated from the gas together with the water.

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The mechanism of particulate collection and removal by a scrubber can be described as a four-
step process.

i) Transport : The particle must be transported to the vicinity of the

water droplets which are usually 10 to 1000 times larger.
ii) Collision : The particle must collide with the droplet.
iii) Adhesion : This is promoted by the surface tension property.
iv) Precipitation: This involves the removal of the droplets, containing
the dust particles from the gas phase.

The physical principles involved in the operation of the scrubbers are: i) impingement, ii)
interception, iii) diffusion and iv) condensation. A brief description is given below:

i) Impingement :
When gas containing dust is swept through an area containing liquid droplets, dust
particles will impinge upon the droplets and if they adhere, they will be collected by them. If the
liquid droplet is approximately 100 to 300 times bigger than the dust particle, the collection
efficiency of the particles is more, because the numbers of elastic collisions increase.
ii) Interception:
Particles that move with the gas stream may not impinge on the droplets, but can be
captured because they brush against the droplet and adhere there. This is known as
interception.
iii) Diffusion:
Diffusion of the particulate matter on the liquid medium helps in the removal of the
particulate matter.
iv) Condensation:
Condensation of the liquid medium on the particulate matter increases the size and weight
of the particles. This helps in easy removal of the particles.

The various types of scrubbers are:

i) Spray towers.
ii) Venturi scrubbers.
iii) Cyclone scrubbers.
iv) Packed scrubbers.
v) Mechanical scrubbers.

The simpler types of scrubbers with low energy inputs are effective in collecting particles above
5 – 10 µ in diameter, while the more efficient, high energy input scrubbers will perform efficiently
for collection of particles as small as 1 – 2 µ in diameter.

The advantages of scrubbers are:

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i) Low initial cost.
ii) Moderately high collection efficiency for small particles.
iii) Applicable for high temperature installations.
iv) They can simultaneously remove particles and gases.
v) There is no particle re- entrainment.

The disadvantages of scrubbers are:

i) High power consumption for higher efficiency.

ii) Moderate to high maintenance costs owing to corrosion and abrasion.
iii) Wet disposal of the collected material.

The scrubbers are used in a variety of applications. Some of the situations are:

i) They‟re particularly useful in the case of a hot gas that must be cooled for some reason.
ii) If the particulate matter is combustible or if any flammable gas is present, even in trace
amounts, in the bulk gas phase, a scrubber is preferred to an electrostatic precipitator.
iii) Scrubbers can be used when there are waste water treatment systems available on the site,
with adequate reserve capacity to handle the liquid effluent.
iv) Scrubbers are also used when gas reaction and absorption are required simultaneously with
particulate control.

LECTURE-39
FABRIC FILTERS:
Fabric filtration is one of the most common techniques to collect particulate matter from
industrial waste gases. The use of fabric filters is based on the principle of filtration, which is a
reliable, efficient and economic methods to remove particulate matter from the gases. The air
pollution control equipment using fabric filters are known as bag houses.

Bag Houses

A bag house or a bag filter consists of numerous vertically hanging, tubular bags, 4 to 18
inches in diameter and 10 to 40 feet long. They are suspended with their open ends attached to
a manifold. The number of bags can vary from a few hundreds to a thousand or more
depending upon the size of the bag house. Bag houses are constructed as single or
compartmental units. In both cases, the bags are housed in a shell made of rigid metal material.
Occasionally, it is necessary to include insulation with the shell when treating high temperature
flue gas. This is done to prevent moisture or acid mist from condensing in the unit, causing
corrosion and rapid deterioration of the bag house.

Hoppers are used to store the collected dust temporarily before it is disposed in a landfill or
reused in the process. Dust should be removed as soon as possible to avoid packing which
would make removal very difficult. They are usually designed with a 60 degrees slope to allow
dust to flow freely from the top of the hopper to the bottom discharge opening. Sometimes

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devices such as strike plates, poke holes, vibrators and rappers are added to promote easy and
quick discharge. Access doors or ports are also provided. Access ports provide for easier
cleaning, inspection and maintenance of the hopper. A discharge device is necessary for
emptying the hopper. Discharge devices can be manual (slide gates, hinged doors and drawers)
or automatic trickle valves, rotary airlock valves, screw conveyors or pneumatic conveyors).

Filter Media

Woven and felted materials are used to make bag filters. Woven filters are used with low energy
cleaning methods such as shaking and reverse air. Felted fabrics are usually used with low
energy cleaning systems such as pulse jet cleaning. While selecting the filter medium for bag
houses, the characteristics and properties of the carrier gas and dust particles should be
considered. The properties to be noted include:

a) Carrier gas temperature

b) Carrier gas composition
c) Gas flow rate
d) Size and shape of dust particles and its concentration

The abrasion resistance, chemical resistance, tensile strength and permeability and the cost of
the fabric should be considered. The fibers used for fabric filters can vary depending on the
industrial application. Some filters are made from natural fibers such as cotton or wool. These
fibers are relatively inexpensive, but have temperature limitations (< 212 F) and only average
abrasion resistance. Cotton is readily available making it very popular for low temperature
simple applications. Wool withstands moisture very well and can be made into thick felts easily.
Synthetic fibers such as nylon, orlon and polyester have slightly higher temperature
limitations and chemical resistance. Synthetic fibers are more expensive than natural fibers.
Polypropylene is the most inexpensive synthetic fiber and is used in industrial applications such
as foundries, coal crushers and food industries. Nylon is the most abrasive resistant synthetic
fiber making it useful for applications filtering abrasive dusts. Different types of fibers with
varying characteristics are available in the market.

Fabric Treatment

Fabrics are usually pre-treated, to improve their mechanical and dimensional stability. They can
be treated with silicone to give them better cake release properties. Natural fibers (wool and
cotton) are usually preshrunk to eliminate bag shrinkage during operation. Both synthetic and
natural fabrics usually undergo processes such as calendering, napping, singeing, glazing or
coating. These processes increase the fabric life and improve dimensional stability and ease of
bag cleaning.
a) Calendering:
This is the high pressure pressing of the fabric by rollers to flatten, smooth, or
decorate the material. Calendering pushes the surface fibers down on to the body of the filter
medium. This is done to increase surface life, dimensional stability and to give a more uniform

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surface to bag fabric.
b) Napping:
This is the scraping of the filter surface across metal points or burrs on a revolving
cylinder. Napping raises the surface fibers, that provides a number of sites for particle collection
by interception or diffusion. Fabrics used for collecting sticky or oily dusts are occasionally
napped to provide good collection and bag cleaning ease.
c) Singeing:
This is done by passing the filter material over an open flame, removing any
straggly surface fibers. This provides a more uniform surface.
d) Glazing:
This is the high pressure pressing of the fiber at elevated temperatures. The fibers
are fused to the body of the filter medium. Glazing improves the mechanical stability of the filter
and helps reduce bag shrinkage that occurs from prolonged use.
e) Coating:
Coating or resin treating involves immersing the filter material in natural or
synthetic resin such as polyvinyl chloride, cellulose acetate or urea - phenol. This is done to
lubricate the woven fibers or to provide high temperature durability or chemical resistance for
various fabric material.

Operation of a bag house:

The gas entering the inlet pipe strikes a baffle plate, which causes larger particles to fall into a
hopper due to gravity. The carrier gas then flows upward into the tubes and outward through
the fabric leaving the particulate matter as a "cake" on the insides of the bags. Efficiency during
the pre-coat formation is low, but increases as the pre-coat (cake) is formed, until a final
efficiency of over 99% is obtained. Once formed, the pre-coat forms part of the filtering medium,
which helps in further removal of the particulate. Thus the dust becomes the actual filtering
medium. The bags in effect act primarily as a matrix to support the dust cake. The cake is
usually formed within minutes or even seconds. The accumulation of dust increases the air
resistance of the filter and therefore filter bags have to be periodically cleaned. They can be
cleaned by rapping, shaking or vibration, or by reverse air flow, causing the filter cake to be
loosened and to fall into the hopper below. The normal velocities at which the gas is passed
through the bags at 0.4-1m/min. There are many types of "filter bags" depending on the bag
shape, type of housing and method of cleaning the fabric.

Efficiency:

The efficiency of bag filters may decrease on account of the following factors:

a) Excessive filter ratios - 'Filter ratio' is defined as the ratio of the carrier gas volume to gross
filter area, per minute flow of the gas. Excessive filter ratios lower particulate removal efficiency
and result in increased bag wear. Therefore, low filter ratios are recommended. Therefore, low
filter ratios are recommended for high concentration of particulate.

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b) Improper selection of filter media - While selecting filter media, properties such as
temperature resistance, resistance to chemical attack and abrasion resistance should be taken
into consideration.

Operating Problems:

Various problems during the operation of a bag house are:

a) Cleaning -
At intervals the bags get clogged up with a covering of dust particles that the gas
can no longer pass through them. At that point, the bags have to be cleaned by rapping,
shaking or by reverse air flow by a pulse jet.
b) Rupture of the cloth -
The greatest problem inherent in cloth filters is the rupture of cloth, which results
from shaking. It is often difficult to locate ruptures and when they‟re found the replacement time
is often considerable.
c) Temperature -
Fabric filters will not perform properly if a gross temperature overload occurs. If the
gas temperature is expected to fluctuate, a fiber material that will sustain the upper temperature
fluctuation must be selected.
Also, whenever the effluent contains a reactive gas like SO2 which can form an acid whenever
the temperature in the bag house falls below the dew point it can create problems. Sometimes it
may even be necessary to provide an auxiliary heater to make sure that the temperature in the
bag house does not fall below acid gas dew point.
d) Bleeding -
This is the penetration of the fabric by fine particles, which is common in fabric
filtration. It can occur if the weave is too open or the filter ratio is very high. The solution is to
use a double layer material or a thick woven fabric.
e) Humidity -
This is a common and important problem, especially if the dust is hygroscopic. It
would therefore be advisable to maintain moisture free conditions within the bag house, as a
precautionary measure.
f) Chemical attack -
This is another problem associated with fabric filters. The possibility of chemical
attack due to corrosive chemicals present in the effluent. A proper choice of fabric filter will
avoid this problem.

Filter cleaning mechanisms:

The following mechanisms are used for cleaning the filters in a bag house:

i) Rapping
ii) Shaking

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iii) Reverse air flow (back wash)
iv) Pulse jet

Multi-Compartment Type Bag House:

If the requirements of the process being controlled are such that continuous operation is
necessary, the bag filter must be of a multi-compartment type to allow individual units of the bag
filter to be successively off-stream during shaking. This is achieved either manually in small
units or by programming control in large, fully automatic units. In this case, sufficient cloth area
must be provided to ensure that the filtering efficiency will not be reduced during shaking off
periods, when any one of the units is off-stream.

The advantages of a fabric filter are:

i) High collection efficiencies for all particle sizes, especially for particles smaller than 10 micron
in diameter.
ii) Simple construction and operation.
iii) Nominal power consumption.
iv) Dry disposal of collected material.

The disadvantages of a fabric filter are:

i) Operating limits are imposed by high carrier gas temperatures, high humidity and other
parameters.
ii) High maintenance and fabric replacement costs. Bag houses are difficult to maintain because
of the difficulty in finding and replacing even a single leaking bag. Also as general rule, about
1/4th of the bags will need replacement every year.
iii) Large size of equipment.
iv) Problems in handling dusts which may abrade, corrode, or blind the cloth.

The applications of a fabric filter are:

Fabric filters find extensive application in the following industries and operations:

i) Metallurgical industry
ii) Foundries
iii) Cement industry
iv) Chalk and lime plants
v) Brick works
vi) Ceramic industry
vii) Flour mills

Cost:

A bag filter is comparatively expensive to install. Its power consumption is moderate. In most
cases, the maintenance cost is high because the bags have to be repaired or replaced
regularly. The nature of the gas and the dust decide the frequency of such maintenance work.

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 LECTURE-40

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